are republicans afraid of rush limbaugh? what do you think, joan? oh, i think they are absolutely afraid of him. ed, i think rush has been like crack for the republican party, and they need more and more of it to get them high and he needs, he personally needs more and more outrage and more and more abuse and misoginy to get himself excited they keep tolerating it, when president obama became president and he wished that he would fail and said he didn't want to bend over backwards and forwards and got into all sort of sexual weirdness about the president, people wouldn't say anything about it then, and every time he says something horrible, republicans are asked to separate themselves and they refuse, they need him to rile up the angry base and they have been living with it and he's really seriously hurting them now. >> the only candidate calling out limbaugh is ron paul. take a look. >> i don't think he's very apologetic, he's doing it because some people were taking their advertisements off his program, it was his bottom line he was concerned abou

republicans are afraid of rush limbaugh. afraid of him. let's listen. >> mr. boehner comes out and says rush's language was inappropriate. using the salad fork for your entree is inappropriate. just as the liberals fail to police the accesses on their own side and it was depressing because what it indicates is the republican leaders are afraid of rush limbaugh. they want to bomb iran, but they are afraid of rush limbaugh. >> they want to bomb iran, but they are afraid of the guy on the radio. providing george will's point, he was asked about his comments late friday night. let's listen to his response. >> it's not the language i would have used. i'm focusing on the issues that are significant for the country today. that's why i'm here talking about jobs in ohio. >> senator, you mentioned earlier that you have three potential opponents come november. >> they said nothing. in fact, the man who selected rush limbaugh and defending that decision today for the missouri hall of fame is in fact one of my opponents campaign chairman. i would think the three candidates

rush limbaugh says liberals made him call sandra fluk a slut and a prostitute. >> rush limbaugh is on the defense. >> the apology to her over the weekend was sincere. >> rush limbaugh has apologized. >> apologizing this weekend for calling a georgetown student a slut. >> i don't think that a statement like this changes anything. >> his apology was a nonapology. >> he's under significant pressure from his sponsors. >> aol is now suspending its advertising. >> that makes a total, if you're counting, of nine advertisers. >> the rush limbaugh debacle last week was incredibly damaging to the party. >> many americans perceive rush limbaugh as the face of the republican party. >> let's talk about women. >> independent women may be the key swing group in this election. >> let's look at some of these numbers. >> oh, my, so many numbers to unpack. >> the new nbc/"wall street journal" poll. 40% have a less favorable opinion of the gop. >> where is mitt romney in all of this? >> 39% of americans have an unfavorable view of women. >> maybe he should stop talking about the birds and the bees and th

she is not going to be bullied by rush limbaugh. for the first time in his career, limbaugh may be getting bullied by the social media. 12 advertisers and two stations said we're done. you think it's going to stop there? we'll see. limbaugh arrow ganltly said that there will be just other advertisers there to replace them, really no worry, they will profit as well. really? at what rate. i'll have more to say about this at the bottom of the hour and something to say about the right wingers comparing my issue with laura ingraham last may coming up at bottom of the hour. >>> get your cell phones out. tonight's question, would you listen to a radio station that continues to carry the rush limbaugh show? a for yes, b for no to 622639. go to our blog at ed.msnbc.com. >>> i'm joined by terry o'neill, president of the national organization for women and krystal ball democratic strategist and msnbc contributor and pushing boycottrush.org. thank you for joining us. terry, should rush limbaugh be fired? >> oh, absolutely he should be fired, ed.

comments in a few moments as we're racking up the tape. >>> rush limbaugh created, as you know, a media fire storm unlike anything we've seen in a long time. his outrageous comments about a georgetown student, sandra fluke, are absolutely shameful, but limbaugh has not backed down and today he continued his vial and despicable talk about the 30-year-old college student. you first met here on the "the ed show." >>> a woman, a law school student at georgetown has it reported about her that she is having so much sex she can't afford her birth control pills anymore. 30 years old, student at georgetown law. who admits to have so much sex that she can't afford it anymore. you know, i offered to pay for aspirins. i thought i'd been quite compassionate here. >> this is disgusting for so many reasons. first of all, rush has his facts wrong. perhaps the worst thing about it is is limbaugh keeps deliberately misrepresenting what she stands for. her testimony about contraception was not about her personally, it was about people with medical problems who need the pill for reasons other than pregnanc

rush limbaugh is very powerful. only that woman but all women from speaking up for women's reproductive health. >> i hear all of you i'm not sure if it's out of bounds on a comedy routine. if he said it on a tv show-- >> i don't think jimmy is very funny. i didn't laugh once during that whole thing. listen, here's the thing. i think that if--it's okay for them to say, well, if rush limbaugh had to apologize some of these people have to apologize. i say it because i would be saying the same thing. if it was only conservatives doing it and a liberal oh, the conservatives had to apologize also. i don't want to be a hypocrite tall. but there is a difference in the arena, and context, that does matter. >> ajesus, you're offer voice of reason. can people drop the "c" word left and right? >> definitely i don't think it's okay. they'll always have that umbrella saying that i'm in a comedy show to cover themselves with. i think it's harder to be so easy to throw that around. >> that's interesting. what if rush limbaugh stood

rush limbaugh characterizes a student as a slut and a prostitute for daring to stand up for a sick friend. there's no condemnation for that attack, no krift schism for rush. there's a defense and it's this, bill maher once called ms. palin a very nasty name. >> i don't know anyone can sit in the audience and laugh. i think it's disgusting and it's dirty money that he's provided barack obama's campaign. i don't know how barack obama can sleep at night and if he thinks about his daughters and the treatment of some women today how he can accept that dirty money. >> for the record, mr. maher does say outrageous things on his late night show. i've been on it. he's a comedian. he's better read than ms. palin. he's never run for office. he knows about domestic and foreign policy, but he's not looking for a cabinet post and he does make donations to political campaigns, but he has no influence and seeks no basic s access and did use a four letter word. why is there such a long line of republicans who keep apairing on his show. people like darrell issa who's very committee deemed her unqualified t

fired up that rush limbaugh is completely out of control. and if rush's offensive comments about women aren't enough, then a connection is being drawn between rush and the conservative rollers the koch brothers. we'll discuss that with filmmaker robert greenwald. and the republicans continue to blame president obama for rising gas prices. and they claim he has no energy policy. tonight we'll put that rumor to rest. this is the "war room." come on inside. ♪ >>> so just when i thought i could not possibly find rush limbaugh anymore loathsome, i actually do. today he doubled down on georgetown law student saundra flake. take a listen. >> so miss fluke, and the rest of you feminine nazis if we are going to pay for you to have contraception and thus pay for you to have sex we want something in return. we want you to post the videos online so we can all watch. >> rush limbaugh is a repulsive massageistic blow hard. his radio program is owned by a cindy indicator premier. which is owned think clear channel. should we not expect more of these compani

sandra fluke was victimized by rush limbaugh for three straight days and she did not accept the apology. isn't that important? many of rush's advertisers are also not accepting the apology. as of right now, limbaugh has lost 45 sponsors. republicans are trying everything they can to avoid criticizing the true leader of the republican party. some of them are even developing wild conspiracy they are res. >> this whole situation is about president obama's entitlement society and war on freedom of religion in the united states of america, his foot soldier, sandra fluke, a contraception activist, is at the center of the storm. >> president obama on the ropes with the economy, and specifically with women voters, gets mrs. luke a controversy and the puppets play along scripted. >> eric bolling, you are brilliant, dude. that theory is moronic. does darrell issa have anything to do with this? he is the chairman of the committee that would not allow sandra fluke to testify. if he let her testify she would have been another american citizen going up on capitol hill, giving her take and insight and

rush limbaugh attacks a law school activist after she goes public on the issue. >> that means her an absolu slu prostitute, wants to be paid. >> jon: and bringing out an attack from the left and media hyping the limbaugh story try hard to paint republicans waging war on women and forget about hurtful words for some of their ranks like bill maher. >> i hope that sarah palin gets in so they split the milf vote. >> jon: and a souped day of politics and coverage. >> big state to call, waiting for ohio. >> too close to call. >> ohio still too close to call. >> mitt romney finally gets the call in ohio and making big gains for the g.o.p. nomination, but earning not so big coverage in the press. >> what would you like to say to mr. romney? >> good luck tonight. (laughter) >> and the president calls in the press for a super tuesday news conference. stealing some attention from the g.o.p. contest. >> no, really, really. >> and a tearful plea for help gets attention thanks to the powerf power of the media. >> jon: judy miller, new york daily news columnist, andrea tantaros, jim pinkerton, the

i'm happy to have ashley madison users join 10 million rush limbaugh users, it seems like a great marriage. if it costs $2, $3 million i'm happy to pony up. >> advertisers are unanimous they feel limbaugh will survive this crisis. he has the largest radio audience in the country. at least 15 million people weekly, that would push rush's audience on par with the highest rated shows on television. his advertising driven income is estimated at more than $56 million a year. joining me now is former democratic national committee chairman, former vermont governor and cnbc contributor howard dean. and melissa harris-perry. melissa, 56 million is quite a perch to fall from. if he lost half his business, he'd still be one of the most powerful voices in radio. it's unlikely that rush will collapse over this. but he's lost some very serious advertisers, not all advertisers are created equal. some of his strongest, biggest dollar advertisers, in our politics, where do you think this story now is in our politics, and where does it go from here? >> well, in a certain way it's exhausting in the middle of

fluke, should ever be subject to the type of insults and vitriol broadcasting during the rush limbaugh show last week. and no individual or business should wish to be associated with this type of irresponsible behavior. he's also been dropped by two radio stations. the fire is red hot under rush. but he pretended today like everything was cool. >> no, we have not lost 28 sponsors. well, how can they say it? because they lie. folks, we have three brand new sponsors that will be starting in the next two weeks. now, obviously, i'm not going to tell you who they are today. that's like losing a couple of french fries in the container when it's delivered to you at the drive-through. you don't even notice it. if we lose 28 of those sponsors, the majority of them being in one city or another, that's a sad occurrence, but, folks, i would venture to say that this happens every day anyway in the course of doing business. >> you know, what i keep trying to tell mr. limbaugh, all of us have said things out of emotion or just being off the cuff that we regretted. you say you're wrong. you say you're

these are rush limbaugh's own words. and by the way, his advertisers are withdrawing their money from the show so clearly it's not something that people agree is okay. >> we're simply out of time. maria, appreciate it. >> 20 years trying to take him out and they have not done it yet and are not now. >> and that's the problem with the republican party. >> appreciate it. mary, appreciate it, ari, appreciate it as well. >>> coming up, more on the tornado damage. we'll be right back. for my arthritis, i use new capzasin quick relief gel. (announcer) starts working on contact and at the nerve level. to block pain for hours. new capzasin, takes the pain out of arthritis. >>> good evening. i'm chad myers. things finally winding down now that it's cooling off. the hot part of day, that's when the storms run afire. the cool part, they die off. we have had deadly tornadoes, and the pictures you're seeing out of west liberty, kentucky, a large tornado on the ground for about 60 miles or so and it did a lot of damage to west liberty

he's giving the same caliber of apology for rush limbaugh that rush limbaugh did.emember, what rush limbaugh said, among other things that this young woman was a slut and prostitute who couldn't afford contraception because she had too much sex, because in rush limbaugh's mind the more sex you have, the more birth control pills you must take or something. the only problem mitt romney has with all that is that he wouldn't have used that specific language but the rest of it is okay? this started off as a rush limbaugh problem. still is a rush limbaugh problem, not getting better for him but now also a mitt romney for president problem. >> rush limbaugh, who is obviously a prominent radio personality, does he have some power within the republican party? >> sure, absolutely he has influence because he has a strong conservative base. i know that, but those statements were unacceptable, in every way and should be condemned by everyone no matter what their political leanings are. >> it's the responsibility of the conservatives to police the right. >> the problem is the le

>>> republicans want to forget about rush limbaugh. but democrats won't let them. >> how are you, folks, it's great to have you back. rush limbaugh here again. >> advertisers have been dropping like flies. >> have you really lost 28 sponsors? >> no, we have not lost 28 sponsors. >> as many as 39 sponsors have pulled out. >> i'm not going to comment on what sponsors decide to do. >> msnbc, pmsnbc has decided their new theme is the war on women. >> women are going to make up their own minds in this election. >> there is no war on women. >> i believe this is the year of the woman. >> they could have carried mitt romney over the ohio finish line. >> if santorum did better with women, he could have pulled it out in ohio. >> it is mathematically improbable that rick santorum can be the nominee. >> we need a person running against president obama. >> newt gingrich needs to drop out right now for that to happen. >> lots money to run through, i'm the tortoise, i take one step at a time. >> newt won his home state and nothing else yesterday, why

can you name me any one of those people that have attacked rush limbaugh that have pointed out what ed schultz said and condemned him for it. the show is hypocrisy. they don't care what rush said, but what they care is about getting rush which is two different things. >> sean: this is interesting thing about this. i don't want to go back into it. i know reverend sharpton, we always debate, interview controversial figures. i don't want to go back into the golden oldeye. >> there comes a point when there is enough is enough. you get plain sick and tired of the hypocrisy of the raging hypocrisy of the network. you have one host on the other who on the record that have made statements that are hundred times more offensive than what rush limbaugh has said.

great to have you here as well. >> great being here, cenk. >> rush limbaugh seems to drive all of thesections. so is he the read of the republican party? >> there's not a lot of ass kissing going on right now. rush has a very big microphone and it is big enough. so it's not surprising his remarks are making an impact especially because let's face it they are crude remarks. when even rick santorum says your comments are out of line probably you are not representing your party or the main constituency behind it. >> adele is it fair to hold the republicans responsible for rush's comments? >> i think it is fair. and this is why. they can't seem to rally to say you don't talk about women this way. they say it is inappropriate or whatever. i think rush is giving the crudest voice to the sentiment of the party that has been evident in this fight against birth control. >> when you look at this who is the party for women and who is the party against? >> when you look at the number of women who are pro life in this country, it's a substantial number, it's around 50%. to say that a democrat owns w

rush limbaugh calls them sluts. he went further except for olympia snowe voted down the line to restrict insurance coverage for women's health. here's part of what rush limbaugh has to say. >> if we are going to pay for your contraceptives, and thus pay for you to have sex, we want something for it. and i'll tell you what it is. we want you to post the videos online so we can all watch. >> we want you to post the videos online so we can all watch. that's rush limbaugh's view of insurance coverage for birth control. much more of this, the message the gop wants to send to women in an election year. is this what they want to say? rush is the spiritual and intellectual leader of the republican party. no one in the party dares speak against him. where are the republicans condemning what he had to say today? nowhere. where's mitt romney on this push for birth control? yesterday he was against it. before he was for it later in the afternoon. he first said what he believes, he doesn't like the idea of getting involved in th

these are rush limbaugh's own words.nd by the way, his advertisers are withdrawing their money from the show so clearly it's not something that people agree is okay. >> we're simply out of time. maria, appreciate it. >> 20 years trying to take him out and they have not done it yet and are not now. >> and that's the problem with the republican party. >> appreciate it. mary, appreciate it, ari, appreciate it as well. >>> coming up, more on the tornado damage. we'll be right back. [ horn honks ] hey, it's sandra -- from accounting. peter. i can see that you're busy... but you were gonna help us crunch the numbers for accounts receivable today. i mean i know that this is important. well, both are important. let's be clear. they are but this is important too. [ man ] the receivables. [ male announcer ] michelin knows it's better for xerox to help manage their finance processing. so they can focus on keeping the world moving. with xerox, you're ready for real business. but proven technologies allow natural gas producers to sup