by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright Oct. 15, 2009
All Rights Reserved.

              Mega-millionaire conservative radio talk show legend Rush Limbaugh got his second rude awakening and lesson in political correctness, after getting dropped in his bid for minority ownership of NFL’s St. Louis Rams.  While NHL’s St. Louis Blues chairman Dave Checketts reportedly approached Rush for the investment opportunity, neither considered the fallout from Rush’s controversial past remarks on his nationally syndicated radio show or off-color public comments.  Rush had once thrown his hat in the ring to sit in ABC’s “Monday Night Football”  booth as a guest-analyst along with veteran host Al Michaels.  “I said to him at this meeting, ‘Are you aware of the firestorm?”  He said, ‘We wouldn’t have approached you if we hadn’t taken care of that,’” Rush said on his daily radio program.  Checketts claimed he cleared Rush at the “highest levels of the NFL.”

            Forced to step down Oct. 2, 2003 as a guest analyst for ESPN’s “NFL Sunday Countdown”, Limbaugh made incendiary remarks about Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback Donovan McNabb. “I think what we’ve had here is a little social concern in the NFL.  The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well,” said Rush, exposing, what many listening to his daily show know, his racist views.  In the colorblind world of professional sports, Rush has a track record of ranting, good, bad or indifferent, about the racially charged areas in American life.  He didn’t give it a second thought about bashing Obama during the campaign and since his inauguration, presumably on policy differences but usually tinged with racial innuendo.  He didn’t hesitate to call recently approved Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor a “racist” for her past public remarks.

            Rush often refers to Obama as “racist” for liberal policies that tend to support minority-related causes.  Rush blamed NFL Players' Association Director DeMaurice Smith, calling him an “Obama-ite.” He also fingered Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson for pressuring the NFL to drop him from his bid for minority ownership.  Whether Rush accepts it or not, the NFL is currently 70% black, carrying a sizable market share of African American viewers.  Adding Limbaugh to NFL ownership would have disastrous consequences for the NFL brand, so closely tied and targeted to the black community.  “What is happening to the National Football Leagues, what is about to happen to it, has already happened to Wall Street, has already happened to the automobile business,” said Rush, implying the NFL was on its way to bankruptcy and government bailouts.

            Unable to accept that his own insensitivity caused the growing snowball of objections inside and outside the NFL, Limbaugh continues to blame “libs” for defeating his ownership bid.  “Believe me, the hatred that exists in this is found in the sportswriter community, it’s found in the news business, it’s found in the race hustler business,” said Rush, blaming objections on the equivalent of a “vast left wing conspiracy,” to paraphrase former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.  Rush can’t accept that an established track record of bashing minorities led to the objections transmitted by the Players’ Association and upper NFL management.  Pointing finger at everyone but himself, Rush doesn’t see his own foibles.  Because he’s so “important” to NFL ownership, Rush wants everyone to see his ouster as an attempt to impose a more draconic collective bargaining agreement.

            Expected negotiations with the Players’ Association had nothing to do with the NFL’s front office asking Limbaugh to withdraw his bid.  Rush can’t believe that good hard cash couldn’t buy himself into NFL ownership.  When you show tone-deafness to political correctness and spew racial insensitivity, someone’s going to object to your involvement in a 70% African American sport.  “It’s designed to intimidate the owners, frighten the owners, and say, ‘We’re running this league now, gang, not you,’” said Rush, giving full display to how he divides the “owners” from the Players’ Association.  Objecting to Rush’s NFL ownership has nothing to do with intimidating owners, simply stating that this wannabe owner has too much controversy on the record to represent the NFL.  Rush’s analysis of “intimidation” to primarily white owners, displays precisely  offensive race-baiting.

            Rush found out the hard way that race-baiting may play well to his radio audience but not the NFL.  His racially insensitive remarks Oct. 2, 2003 on ESPN’s “NFL Sunday Countdown” about the late Donovan McNabb reveal why the NFL had to withdraw his ownership bid.  “This little warning shot fired across the bow to the owners, to say ‘Get ready, have we come for the next collective bargaining agreement,’ so we’ll see how it unfolds,” said Rush trying to paint his rejection as a sign of reverse racism.  NFL owners rejected Rush, not because they don’t find him entertaining, but precisely because he’s too incendiary and controversial.  Owners today have far too many problems negotiating contracts and making profits than jeopardizing ad revenue and fan support by hiring controversial entertainers.  If Rush really wants to join the NFL, he should start by toning down the hot air.

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news.  He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.