White House Cheat Sheet: Democrats Ca$h in on Rush

Democrats are using Rush Limbaugh to raise money. AP Photo by Ron Edmonds

A number of Democratic candidates and committees are using the controversial remarks made by conservative-talk radio host Rush Limbaugh about President Obama to raise money and recruit volunteers to their causes.

In an email sent to supporters late Thursday and entitled "Kowtow," Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee executive director J.B Poersch writes, "when Rush says jump, congressional Republicans say how high?" and urges recipients to sign a petition condemning Limbaugh's behavior and calling on Senate GOPers to "declare their independence" from him.

A similar missive came out of the Democratic Governors Association as well. "Did you hear what Rush said?" writes DGA executive director Nathan Daschle, adding that Limbaugh and his acolytes will do everything they can to block the implementation of Obama's economic stimulus plan. The best way to stop Rush? Why, send money to the DGA of course.

And, the Democratic National Committee is raising money to sponsor a billboard in Limbaugh's hometown to "send him a message", according to an email sent by DNC executive director Jen O'Malley Dillon.

The appeals by the DNC, DSCC and DGA are the latest but far from the only evidence of how Democrats are seeking to use Limbaugh's comments as a cudgel against Republicans. Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe, who is running for governor in Virginia, sent a letter to state Attorney General Bob McDonnell, the GOP nominee, calling on him to renounce Rush, and followed that up with an email petition drive aimed at pressuring McDonnell to "prove" his bipartisan credential by casting Limbaugh off the Republican island.

"Bob McDonnell says he knows how to work across party lines," said Mo Elleithee, a consultant to McAuliffe's campaign. "He can prove it by showing that he is willing to stand up to the de facto head of his party and repudiate his divisive rhetoric."

The appeal of these appeals is obvious for Democrats. As popular as Limbaugh is among the conservative base, he is equally reviled among liberal Democrats -- the very same group that is most likely to give money or donate their time to a candidate or committee.

While neither the DGA nor the DSCC would discuss what sort of response -- financial or otherwise -- their email petitions have received, one source familiar with the DSCC effort said it was on pace to rival a similar email sent out after then President George W. Bush commuted the sentence of former Cheney chief of staff Scooter Libby, who was convicted of obstruction in the Valerie Plame leak investigation.

In the end, this may be the lasting impact of Limbaugh's raised profile in the national political debate. It's highly unlikely that any candidate will win or lose in 2010 as a direct result of Limbaugh but the indirect effect on Democratic fundraising, organizing and base-rallying could be sustained and significant.

Obama in Ohio: President Obama jets to Columbus, Ohio today to speak at a police officer graduation. The idea is to tout the economic stimulus plan as some of the money sent to the Buckeye State was used to retain these new graduates rather than let them go.

Friday Must-Reads: Scanning the world of news for the best and brightest.

1. After a one day respite on Wednesday, the Dow continues its plummet.
2. The White House launches a new website (www.healthreform.gov) and announces a series of town halls to sell the public on the need for healthcare reform.
3. The man who beat, and subsequently lost to, Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman (I) is mulling a run for governor in 2010.
4. Politico.com commander in chief John Harris steps down from on high to pen an interesting piece on the uncertain future of the Democratic Leadership Council.
5. The Obama Administration is no longer "Paging Dr. Gupta."

DCCC Weighs in on NY-20: Keep an eye on the Albany media market today and you just might catch the first ad paid for the by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's independent expenditure arm. With a little over three weeks remaining in the special election race between state Assemblyman Jim Tedisco (R) and businessman Scott Murphy (D), the DCCC will weigh in -- seeking to use their financial might to overcome the efforts of the National Republican Congressional Committee for Tedisco. GOP strategists have privately fretted about the DCCC's continuing financial edge and how they might bring it to bear in this race. No details on the extent of the ad buy yet but Democrats want to keep this Upstate seat in their column to keep up the momentum built last fall.

Twitter Drive: As of yesterday, we are nearing 7,750 followers. The goal is 10,000. Perhaps a giveaway of a few Fix T-shirts would do the trick? Tell your friends. Tell your enemies. Sign up to follow "TheFix" and "TheHyperFix."

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The Clown is Back: For all of those (like the Fix) who mourned the departure of Krusty Conservative from the Iowa blogosphere, the time to rejoice is now. Krusty along with a passel of other GOP bloggers has re-formed under the umbrella of The Iowa Republican. Bookmark it. You'll thank us when presidential caucus season rolls around.

More Charlie Pics!: For those of you who have wanted to see a few more shots of the latest addition to the Fix family (and who wouldn't?), check out this and this.

Say What?: "It really is an honor to have him here and I know for some of my staff, and for bragging rights to my children and my grandchildren, a real treat for me as well." -- Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) gushes, er, introduces actor Brad Pitt on Capitol Hill Thursday.