The Devils in Rush Limbaugh ... and the Rest of Us
by Larry Shannon
Publisher, RadioDailyNews.com

There are devils and demons in all of us.  Whether they are ancient dwellers in our souls and consciences or recent visitors to our lives, they are there.  You cannot deny that you have your own.  Some have the faces of white lies or dirty little secrets, a past embarrassment or a remembered moment in your life that you wish had never happened and that you could take back if you could turn back time.

No one is perfect or will go through their whole life without devils and demons or moments of despair and disarray.  We're all equal in this blessed land of the United States.  For some of us, those devils and demons have already reared their heads and doomed or dispirited us.  For others, it is just not yet our time or turn.

One minute, all is right with our worlds.  Then, the next minute, a senseless or stupid act, an emergency phone call, a misdeed, deceit or wrong turn puts us on a path we thought we'd never walk.

When the news came that Rush Limbaugh had been visited by devils and demons, it should not have surprised us.  Although he and so many other public figures are adored and worshipped or hated and disdained, the devils and demons choose their quarry without regard to the level of their notoriety, wealth or fame, talent quotient, age or color of their skin.

And so, you and RadioDailyNews.com will together go down this long avenue of anguish with Rush Limbaugh and those who are associated with him and his world.  We don't know how long the journey will last.  Some say thirty days and some say six months, while others say it will last forever.

This will be a journey on which you will find yourself reading news stories and commentaries of, by and about Rush Limbaugh that some will label as liberal or conservative.  There will be accusations and arguments, bitterness and battle scars, revelations and revulsions. 

No doubt, the dirty laundry of Rush Limbaugh and those associated with him now and during his whole life will be dragged out onto the streets and sidewalks for the curious to trample on and through, and decipher.  It will not be limited to Limbaugh alone.  

The spreading story will encompass many and cause us to look at and learn more than we probably want to know about his wife, Marta, his former maid, his $25 Million mansion, the drug dealers in Palm Beach, his EIB staff in New York and Palm Beach, Clear Channel and Premier, the law enforcement agencies who are investigating this case of ill-gotten, illegal drugs, as well as his brother and mother, late father and grandfather and just ordinary people who will be asked to offer their opinions or volunteer to tell their stories.  

Microphones will be shoved in people's faces, reporter's notebooks will be bulging with quotes and the Internet and electronic media will be buzzing with debate.

But, isn't that the way that Rush Limbaugh seemed to instruct his listeners, readers, admirers, followers, detractors and associates to approach life?  Just put all of the evidence out into the open and then you can be the ones who will debate, discuss and decide for yourself.

The stage is set.  The actors are gathering.  The stage lights for "Act Two" are about to come up. 

How big of a story will this become and what are the ramifications of it?  We don't know.  A "Rush-gate?" Maybe. Maybe not.  Will he be labeled a "pathetic creature," a "fallen angel"  or something else that he and his fans would cringe upon their hearing him described that way?

But, don't kid yourself.  This is not a three day story.  It won't be over in thirty days at the end of his drug rehabilitation center visit.  This weekend and coming days are times for the media to catch their collective breaths and try to find a direction that this story is moving so they will know how to report it. 

You'll hear commentators declare that "it is old news" or "it's a dead story" a hundred times and more in the coming weeks. But, just when it seems like the storm is over, a sudden and unexpected revelation will rock the foundation of the EIB empire and its environs, and set off an explosion of coverage once again.

The danger zone for Rush Limbaugh lies between the "I" and the "F" in the word, "IF."  It is from within that area between the "I" and the "F" that the questions and answers will be examined.  There are a lot of ifs, buts and maybes that the media and legal authorities have yet to explore and Limbaugh has yet to explain.

If none of the allegations from his accusers turn out to have any truth in them, then he may come through this mess okay.  However, if even a few of the allegations that are being made have "legs," a different story could be written.

The first defense tactic is to attack the messenger.  But, it appears that the National Enquirer has been correct on much of the content that is has published.  It is up to investigative reporters on TV, radio and with newspapers to "trust a little but verify a lot" these Enquirer stories and query their own sources.

These past few days, reporters, commentators, friends and foes have been pouring over the current and most recent issues of the National Enquirer to read, what are alleged to be, the transcripts of Limbaugh and his maid's taped phone calls and e-mails.  In both issues of the Enquirer, they're reading quotes from his housekeeper, Wilma, 42, about a seemingly paranoid Limbaugh bullying, then groping and kissing her to find out if she was wearing a wire, that he may have been mooching off of others -- a stenographer and a Limbaugh mansion houseman -- to get pain pills.  

And there is a statement in the Enquirer story that Limbaugh may have purchased and received illegal drugs which were sent to his mansion from other suppliers via FedEx delivery.  The National Enquirer reveals that the authorities are hoping to find out the originating address of the FedEx pills delivered to Palm Beach. 

Have subpoenas been issued for evidence of this kind or has Limbaugh and his lawyers already turned over evidence in exchange for leniency if Limbaugh faces possible prosecution? The Enquirer articles mention his stash of illegal Cuban cigars.  Will he give up the name of his source for these illegal cigars?  If he does "squeal" on his sources for the alleged FedExed illegal pills and Cuban cigars, will he be branded a "Rat" in the same way that some of the Limbaugh supporters are labeling the maid a rat for turning in Limbaugh to the authorities?  

Will present and former EIB staff members "say for pay" like the maid?  If they no longer fear the wrath and withering righteousness of Rush Limbaugh, who's to say there won't be more confessions and a possible coup d'état?

The avenue of anguish for Limbaugh leads all the way to the White House and the halls of the Congress as well.  In Evan Thomas' piece just published in Newsweek, he writes: "Former president George H.W. Bush, always eager to cover his right flank, personally carried Limbaugh’s bags into the White House when Limbaugh stayed in the Lincoln Bedroom in 1992. After the Republicans won control of the House in 1994 for only the second time in 50 years, lawmakers called to personally thank Limbaugh and made him an honorary member of Congress."  What will the reactions of the current and former presidents, and members of Congress be to the Limbaugh news?  It's the job of journalists to ask, and the public will welcome their comments.

The Enquirer articles declare that, according to Wilma's ledger, Limbaugh bought more than 30,000 pills from her from July 2001 to June 2002.  That's one year of the 5 years that she worked for him, so there may have been more illegal pills purchases.  At one time, according to her statements, he owed her $80,000.  She says that a lawyer paid her $100,000 (a $20,000 bonus) to cover the debt and then, four months later, the attorney presented her with a check in the amount of $100,000 to get her to hand over her computer which may have contained e-mails from Limbaugh.

There are many trails of evidence to travel.  If there is evidence of a cover-up on his part, Limbaugh could face legal charges.  There are many questions asked, much speculation and few answers forthcoming from Limbaugh and his team.

The public's reading of both Enquirer's articles about Limbaugh will evoke different responses. If you haven't read both of the articles in the Enquirer (October 14 and October 21), you should. 

You'll hear both the articles and the National Enquirer trashed, damned, praised, quoted like scripture or condemned as fantasy and the product of greed.  You may see carloads of the National Enquirer burned by the true Limbaugh believers.  We don't know, but we'll soon find out.

The legal authorities say that they can neither "confirm or deny what any of the sources in this (National Enquirer) article told the Enquirer." They are continuing their investigations. 

Will Larry Klayman and Judicial Watch get involved with the Limbaugh matter like they did during President Clinton's legal troubles?  Who knows.  It should be noted that Judicial Watch does have a southern regional office in Miami.  

Can we expect to hear the tapes of the phone calls between Limbaugh and his maid broadcast on TV and radio?  Maybe.

Rush Limbaugh said on Friday, "You know I have always tried to be honest with you and open about my life. So I need to tell you today that part of what you have heard and read is correct. I am addicted to prescription pain medication. ... At the present time the authorities are conducting an investigation, and I have been asked to limit my public comments until this investigation is complete. So, I will only say that the stories you have read and heard contain inaccuracies and distortions, which I will clear up when I am free to speak about them."

Limbaugh has chosen not to deny specifically any of the allegations that have been made or clarify what he meant when he said that "part of what you have heard and read is correct."  His silence only prolongs the time between when the allegations and accusations were published and when he or his representatives do address them individually and specifically.

Limbaugh can choose his own time and place to answer.  That is his privilege and his position. But, he cannot escape the telling of the truth that he declares he will provide and that the public is expecting of him.

I know that you will join me in hoping that he is able to kick his drug addiction and is on his way to a healthy recovery.  If you consider yourself to be an enemy of Limbaugh's, remember that even soldiers care for the wounds of their enemies on the battlefield -- and it seems like the Limbaugh matter will be fought on the battlefields of ideas, passions, truth, accountability and consequences.

The answers to the legal questions will not be found within the drug rehabilitation center where he has gone to find a solution to his drug addiction.  They can only be answered by him stepping up to the now tarnished golden EIB microphone and being truthful. 

It has been said that a "non-denial is just as good as saying you're guilty."  So, the media, legal authorities, other talk show hosts, commentators, supporters and detractors are left with that impression.  That impression now lingers like a foul smell in the air, "across the fruited plains," and fills the lungs of the radio profession. 

Because Limbaugh is "one of us" and you wear the title of "media person," you will be touched by and have a role in this journey on the avenue of anguish with Rush Limbaugh, too. You will be asking and answering questions from listeners, readers, media associates, friends and family.  

You will be questioned about your life, your acts and similar encounters you may have had during your own career. You may defend Limbaugh or declare him to be guilty before he is tried in the appropriate manner.  That is up to you.

On the other side of all of this, we'll all be better off for having taken this journey of understanding.  Let's hope that a greater good comes from the misfortunes that have befallen this man and that each of us looks at life differently and with a new perspective.

During its nearly three years of being online, RadioDailyNews.com has become a unique resource crossroads for radio, TV and the electronic media people to meet.  It is visited, subscribed to and read by you and the rest of the world's most influential media people; producers, performers, writers, management, owners and on-air talent, to name a few. In addition to its readership in the 50 United States and territories, RDN is visited from the worldwide locations of Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, New Zealand, France, Iraq, Greenland, Iceland and Canada.

In the coming days, weeks and months, the whole world will be watching, reading, listening and talking about this fall from grace by Rush Limbaugh on RadioDailyNews.com and other media gathering places.  RDN will continue to bring you all sides of this matter, in the form of both news and commentaries, as Rush Limbaugh, legal authorities, corporate entities and attorneys enter this mixed arena of reasonable and rambunctious truths and deceptions.

The devils and demons have visited themselves upon Rush Limbaugh.  Will he, his family, fans and enemies be able to exorcise them?  Will he rise again from the valleys where the devils and demons deep within him dwell?

The questions and answers lie ahead.  Are you ready?  Then, let's begin the journey.

RadioDailyNews.com welcomes your comments and viewpoints.  We'll print some of them, but not all.  We'll avoid the duplications or childish diatribes.

We expect that your comments will be of the same high quality as is exemplified by the high caliber of the readers, viewers and subscribers of RDN. 

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