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MATT LEWIS AND THE NEWS

Rush Limbaugh Never Let On He Went to School With Pastor Jones

2 years ago
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As you may have heard, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh and Terry Jones (you know, the Gainesville, Fla., pastor who threatened to burn Korans on 9/11) graduated from the same high school in Cape Girardeau, Mo., in 1969.

On Friday, Pastor Jones was all over morning TV and continued to go back and forth on whether he would be burning any Korans on the ninth anniversary of the terrorist attacks.

Interestingly, Limbaugh referenced the Pastor Jones story on two recent occasions. But according to transcripts, he never disclosed their shared past. Instead, Limbaugh referred to him simply as "the preacher," "the guy," or "the Gainesville pastor."

On Sept. 8, Limbaugh asked listeners of his popular radio show: "By the way, has the ACLU weighed in yet on the Gainesville pastor who wants to burn the Koran? Why not? I mean, if the ACLU would be consistent they'd move in there and defend this Gainesville pastor's right to burn the Koran."

Rush Limbaugh; Terry JonesThe next day, Limbaugh responded to a caller's question about whether Jones might be talked out of burning the Korans, saying: "Well, we did have [Robert] Gibbs say in the White House press briefing they're thinking about calling the preacher. I don't know what they want to do. Maybe try to talk the preacher into not doing this."

That same day, Limbaugh also mocked the media's coverage of the story (which he deemed too insignificant to garner this much attention) saying: "We're being manipulated by this poor little guy down there, this church, burning the Koran. That's silly. It's not worth the energy everybody's expending over it. How many people go to this guy's church, 50? Thirty? And here's Obama weighing in on it."

But what he did not do, at least, according to transcripts, is say, "You know, I went to high school with Terry."

To be sure, it would be wrong to make too much of this shared past. After all, you can't pick your high school classmates -- and neither can Limbaugh. And as Thomas Lifson, editor of American Thinker, a site Limbaugh frequently references, noted, "For the record, Rush does not support the Koran burning, and thinks the whole incident is a distraction. But that won't stop lefties from trying to slime him with this random connection."

Lifson is, of course, correct. Limbaugh is a lightning rod, and his connection to this controversial story, regardless of how peripheral it is, will surely to fuel interest. Last night, MSNBC's Keith Olbermann Re-Tweeted this: " 'Rev.' Terry Jones was classmate of none other than Rush Limbaugh (Cape Central class of '69). Coincidence?"

On the other hand, isn't it a bit odd that Limbaugh would discuss this story on his nationally syndicated radio show and yet not at least disclose that they went to school together? This wouldn't have been an indictment. He could have said, "Folks, I went to school with this guy, and he wasn't this crazy back then."

Of course, it's possible that Limbaugh honestly didn't realize this was the same Terry Jones, but that's unlikely. Cape Girardeau, like many Midwestern towns, is a small, tight-knit community. The Limbaughs are like royalty there, and Rush's brother David still practices law there.

More likely, Limbaugh chose to simply not disclose the background, hoping it would go unnoticed. There's nothing unethical about that, in my estimation, but it is, at least, weirdly secretive.

I guess we will have to listen to his show today to find out more. . .

Update: Limbaugh responds.
Filed Under: Matt Lewis and the News
Tagged: pastor terry jones, rush limbaugh
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235 Comments

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cque8

NEWSFLASH>>>Rush Limbaugh was seen dining at a restaurant frequented by LIBERAL DEMOCRATS. It is reported that he has dined there for four years, and is believed that actual greetings, and conversations took place. Sources close report that Conservative Leaders are livid by this news, and many are worried that this could lead to the CONVERSION of Rush Limbaugh to the Far Left....More Updates during the next Lunar Eclipse...

October 13 2010 at 5:36 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
ANNIE-GIRL

So what if Limbaugh went to school with this Pastor. I went to school with a lot of other people to. That does not mean I shared classes with them or knew them

October 13 2010 at 1:39 PM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down Reply
Ali Grimes

Why is this still running across the header?

October 12 2010 at 10:02 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Dave

When I went to high school, there were alot of students I did not know, either by name or by sight. There was too much to do. I went through my yearbook and tried to remember all the ones I could and found maybe 10% I could say I knew - on any level. What are the odds that anyone reading this can say they knew all their classmates? Mindless comparison.

October 12 2010 at 9:47 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
tersimp

Must be a really slow news day. What is the point of this story ? I went to school with alot of people I don't remember. Really Matt ?

October 06 2010 at 6:13 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
theweehedgehog

There is so much going on in the world... and in the country... and yet this guy can only write an article about two people who in the over all scheme of things are just two people with their own opinions. So they went to school together....SO WHAT?

September 30 2010 at 1:47 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Lisa

What is the point of this story? Even though Limbaugh went to school with Rev Jones, was he in on the proposed burning of the Koran? Hey, I'm no lover of Limbaugh, but his omission is totally without merit. I went to school with a lot of people I didn't know and my school was small. Did he even know at the time his show aired they went to the same school. And if he was aware of it, I don't blame him for the omission, it would have just been fuel for the fire.

September 30 2010 at 12:40 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
jsim6974

Both graduated in '69. Both dodged the draft. Both are cluess.

September 28 2010 at 9:49 PM Report abuse +4 rate up rate down Reply
monseigneurdev

Wow! Things turned out very differently for these gabbers. The poor guy had an old product and bad marketing.

September 23 2010 at 7:18 PM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down Reply
monseigneurdev

Wow! Things turned out very differently for these gabbers. The poor guy had an old product and bad marketing.

September 23 2010 at 7:15 PM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down Reply

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