So much for ABC News' massive screw-up last night, claiming on the air that Rush Limbaugh apologized for calling Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's tremors "fake." CNN just aired what Limbaugh said, and, big surprise, it wasn't an apology at all.
LIMBAUGH: "All right then, I stand corrected... so I will bigly, hugely admit that I was wrong, and I will apologize to Michael J. Fox, if I am wrong in characterizing his behavior on this commercial as an act."I will apologize if I am wrong? How is that an apology? All Limbaugh said is that if anyone can prove him wrong, some day, then that day he will apologize. That's not an apology. It's not even one of those lame "I apologize if you were offended" apologies.
It's as if the media simply hears the word "apologize" and can't be bothered to dig deeper, to look at the context, to look at what the subject of the interview is actually saying. It's really quite sloppy, and furthers the kind of misinformation politicians are all too willingly to feed the media and the public.
Limbaugh needs to say clearly that he WAS wrong and that APOLOGIZES to Michael J. Fox for what he said. Period. And then we need to hear from Republicans Jim Talent of Missouri, one of Limbaugh's biggest supporters, and a man who is pushing legislation to honor Limbaugh's grandfather, and from Mark Green of Wisconsin and Michael Steele of Maryland as to whether they agree with Limbaugh that people with Parkinson's disease are simply faking it.
What yesterday's CNN broadcast about this here. Then hear what Limbaugh said about Fox and people with Parkinson's, and see the ad that got Limbaugh so upset, here.
