GOP Can No Longer Afford to Avoid Rush Limbaugh Problem in Wake of Ugly "Slut" Comment About Sandra Fluke (Photo credit: Bearman 2007)

We knew the day was coming when the GOP would have to confront its Rush Limbaugh problem head-on and they can’t keep dancing around the issue. Rush Limbaugh’s basic argument about the government paying for contraceptives wasn’t unfounded. In fact, it is a legitimate policy issue, but the way in which he denigrated Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke to prove his point was not only despicable but misogynistic at best. The government should not be paying for birth control pills any more than it should be footing the bill for Viagra.

The media outlets that carry Rush Limbaugh’s radio show shouldn’t be let off the hook any more than the show’s advertisers. We have to stand for something and not fall for anything. Respect should be demanded of ALL women. It’s very telling when we have yet to hear from the so-called women of the GOP such as Sarah Palin. Let’s not forget when David Letterman made sex jokes about Sarah Palin’s daughter, all hell broke loose and he was forced to issue an apology. Well, Rush Limbaugh should be held to the same standard and not just dismissed as an “entertainer,” as Rick Santorum said. We can’t give some people a pass and punish others. Don Imus was kicked off the air when he called the Rutgers University women’s basketball players “nappy-headed hos.” You remember the outrage that erupted, right? Then the same treatment should be afforded to Rush Limbaugh.

Washington Post: We are not calling for censorship. Nor are we suggesting that the ostensible policy issue here — mandatory provision of contraception under health insurance paid for by religious-based institutions such as Georgetown — is a simple one. Those who questioned President Obama’s initial decisions in this area — we among them — were not waging a “war on women,” as Democrats have alleged in strident fundraising appeals.

What we are saying is that Mr. Limbaugh has abused his unique position within the conservative media to smear and vilify a citizen engaged in the exercise of her First Amendment rights, and in the process he debased a national political discourse that needs no further debasing. This is not the way a decent citizen behaves, much less a citizen who wields significant de facto power in a major political party. While Republican leaders owe no apology for Mr. Limbaugh’s comments, they do have a responsibility to repudiate them — and him.

Rush Limbaugh doubled down claiming that the left was going crazy. Well, so are some on the right, including John Boehner and Carly Fiorina. He changed the premise of the discussion to something ugly that the Republican Party cannot ignore. Calling a woman, who he knew nothing about a “slut” and a “prostitute” was vitriolic and low. In essence, Rush Limbaugh has called ALL women who share the same views as Sandra Fluke sluts and prostitutes. How would he like someone to call his mother, his sister (if he has one), his wife or a female cousin a slut?

The bottom line is that he represents the conservative mindset in this country to a large degree and the Republican Party cannot afford to be tied to this wingnut. Rush Limbaugh needs to remember that karma is a beeyotch and what goes around, comes around. His day is coming and many will rejoice at whatever curve ball life throws him. It’s funny that Newt Gingrich claims to stand for so much, but really stands for nothing. He was pretty vocal about President Obama apologizing for the recent Koran burning in Afghanistan, but mum on Rush Limbaugh calling Sandra Fluke a slut.