Heel, Steele

RNC Chairman Michael Steele kisses Rush's ring after Rush ripped him a new one for comments Steele made on CNN's D.L. Hughley show.

Steele to Politico: “I went back at that tape and I realized words that I said weren’t what I was thinking. It was one of those things where I thinking I was saying one thing, and it came out differently. What I was trying to say was a lot of people … want to make Rush the scapegoat, the bogeyman, and he’s not....I’m not going to engage these guys and sit back and provide them the popcorn for a fight between me and Rush Limbaugh. No such thing is going to happen. … I wasn’t trying to slam him or anything.”

So what did Steele say that got Rush steamed?

HUGHLEY: "Rush Limbaugh, who is the de facto leader of the Republican Party--"
STEELE: "No, he's not."
HUGHLEY: "Well, I'll tell you what, I've never--"
STEELE: "I'm the de facto leader of the Republican Party."
HUGHLEY: "Then you know what? Then I can appreciate that, but no -- no one will -- will actually pry down some of the things he says, like when he comes out and says that he wants the president to fail, I understand he wants liberalism to fail."
STEELE: "How is that any different than what was said about George Bush during his presidency? Let's put it into context here. Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh, the whole thing is entertainment. Yes, it's incendiary, yes, it's ugly--"

Steele is head of the Republican National Committee and not the Republican party. The WH and Dems have seized upon Rush's repeated bellowing on how he hopes Obama's economic gambit fails, and are taking rare shots from the WH press room in attempts to define Rush as the face of the Republican party.

The Hill: When asked Monday why he would "elevate" Limbaugh by addressing his criticisms from the podium, Gibbs said Limbaugh "elevated himself.""He's got, I understand, a fairly popular radio show," Gibbs said.



Here's Rush on his show Monday: