I’ve been thinking about Rush Limbaugh a lot lately. El Rushbo is back in the news. In fact, if you’ve seen more than a minute of cable TV news this week, you’ve probably caught multiple airings of those Rush Revere commercials — the much-ballyhooed revival of Limbaugh’s book series for kids.
And I hate the commercial! I loathe it with the smoldering fury of a thousand suns.
Because I loved the books. Used to read ‘em to my kids at night (using a funny, squeaky voice for Liberty, Rush’s time-traveling horse). And I still tremble in awe of the radio legend whose “talent was on loan from God.”
The idea that one harmless, loveable fuzzball with a microphone — all alone in the radio booth, without the help of co-hosts, sidekicks, wackpacks, guests, a Morning Zoo, celebrity interviews, or even (most of the time) callers — would have America’s #1 show for decades(!) at a time, simply by speaking extemporaneously about life, culture, and politics is totally bonkers. It defies logic and common sense.
Had we not witnessed it ourselves, we wouldn’t believe it’s possible. Rush’s talent level was beyond extraordinary — but because he was a conservative, he never got his due as one of the greatest performers in media history.
He was the quintessential radio professional.
But that new Rush Revere commercial looks like amateur hour. Other than Rush’s narration, it’s awkward and stilted. Kathryn Limbaugh, who married Rush in 2010 and was with him until his death in 2021, does some of the voice-over. Both her delivery and the script were weak. (Here’s a link.)
As a Rush Limbaugh superfan, that’s a bummer because I know how audiences think: They associate a low-quality commercial with a low-quality product.
(And there’s nothing low-quality about the series. The books are phenomenal. Buy ‘em for your kids and grandkids!)
Branding is the art of attaching adjectives to products, properties, and people — and the knowledge that everything communicates something. There are no islands in our minds: Whatever happens, big or small, becomes part of the story.
It matters in business, but it matters more in politics.
Because when we buy a product, it’s far easier for us to understand its utility and value. Eventually, the merits (such as they are) outstrip the marketing message. A slick PR campaign might get your foot in the door, but if your product sucks, your business will fail.
You can’t fool audiences forever.
But politics is based on ideas, and ideas are abstract. It’s like nailing Jello to a tree: Democrats blame Republicans, Republicans blame Democrats, and there are always a million competing narratives. Political media has become a Choose Your Own Adventure, with liberals and conservatives selecting dramatically different storylines — and radically different interpretations. It’s inherently murky.
Which is why successful politicians prioritize emotional branding: It’s how they make audiences feel a certain way… even when they don’t fully understand the issue.
But not all branding campaigns work. A large number of ‘em crash and burn (spectacularly, too!), usually because there’s a disconnect between how the messenger and his target audience see the world.
The biggest mistake in marketing is marketing to yourself — and not your audience.
We’re witnessing this mistake unfold this week, with two major news stories that are generating tons of media interest: The first is President Donald Trump’s so-called profiteering from the White House. CNN, MS NOW, and all the usual suspects are covering this “scandal” nonstop, 24/7.
PBS: Trump’s $2B Income in 2025 Raises Fresh Questions About Profiting Off Presidency
MS NOW: As Trump Profits From the Presidency, He Tries (and Fails) to Defend His Massive Windfall
Washington Post: Trump’s Wealth Grew on a Scale Without Modern Presidential Precedent
The New York Times: Trump’s Moneymaking Run: Unrivaled in Presidential History
CNN: Soaring Revenue at Mar-a-Lago Shows How Trump’s Business Interests and Politics Intersect
The Hill: Trump Responds to Eye-Popping Report on Crypto Profits While President
Democracy Now: Profiting From the Presidency: Trump and Family Rake in Billions From Crypto, Real Estate & More
The Guardian: Trump Accused of ‘Disgusting’ Greed After Being Paid Over $2B Since Return to Office
Bloomberg: Trump Crypto Profits Show Need for Ethics Rules, Democrats Say
France 24: ‘Everybody’s Profiting’: Trump Defends $1.4B Crypto Earnings
CNBC: Trump Says ‘Everybody’s Profiting’ From Recent Market Rallies — but It’s Mostly the 1%
The Free Press: Trump’s Art of the Self-Deal
Politico: ‘We Should All Only Hope for Such Great Rates of Return’
The second is Tucker Carlson’s announcement that he’s launching a new political party to compete against the GOP. Between their coverage of the profiteering “scandal,” the usual media suspects are downright giddy over the prospects of Tucker Carlson dividing the Republican Party. It’s fodder for liberal dreams!
The mainstream media wants you to panic. Don’t.
Both campaigns will crash and burn.
The profiteering scandal won’t land because CNN/MS NOW’s target audience already believes that the president is a racist, sexist, xenophobic, Russian-controlled stooge who raped little girls with Jeffrey Epstein, is a wannabe fascist, and is even worse than Hitler (yada yada). In their minds, this is like saying, “Oh no, Charles Manson was guilty of littering, too.”
Bottom line? An anticlimactic branding story doesn’t sell: The stakes are too low.
And the audience is bored.
Meanwhile, the Tucker Carlson story won’t matter because actually building a nationally viable political party is really, really hard work. It’s a lot easier to talk about it than to do it. (Just ask Elon Musk.) More often than not, this kind of blather is simply radio shtick. (Just ask Howard Stern.) Chances are excellent that Carlson won’t get this idea off the drawing board.
But even if he succeeded, at this point, a Tucker Carlson-led party would almost certainly take more votes away from the Democrats than the Republicans.
That wasn’t true four or five years ago. There once was a time when Tucker Carlson was the most influential personality in all of conservative media. Had he sought to split the party back then, he probably could’ve.
Not anymore. Now he’s a single-issue podcaster — Jews, Jews, and Jews — and that puts him out of step with most Republicans. The Reagan Foundation just released a new survey: 75% of Republicans (and 80% of MAGA Republicans) say Israel’s security matters to U.S. security and prosperity.
What’s most remarkable is the consistency: In the last three Reagan Foundation surveys, “Republican support for arming Israel has held steady” — 67%, 68%, 68% — as has support from MAGA Republicans, at 73%, 72%, 73%.
But it’s a slam-dunk guarantee that the Democrats’ 2028 nominee will adopt a stridently anti-Israel position. Because that’s what the liberal base demands! Unless you accuse Israel of genocide, forsake AIPAC donations, support “Free Palestine,” and refuse to sell Israel weapons, you’ll be devoured by the DSA true-believers, Islamic rabblerousers, and grassroots activists.
That’s because leftists have emotionally branded the Israel/Gaza story: The lie that “Israel is guilty of genocide” is their beachhead belief.
Of course, the Democrats’ 2028 nominee won’t have the luxury of only marketing to blue-state leftists. For pragmatic reasons — and getting votes and coddling donors count as pragmatic reasons — the Dem nominee will have to make certain ideological concessions. It’s inevitable in a national campaign.
Which means that the Donkey’s 2028 nominee won’t be as aggressively anti-Israel as his or her supporters. More likely than not, after running left in the primaries, he or she will sprint toward the middle.
That’s the opening a Carlson-inspired party would need to siphon off millions of anti-Israel votes.
If your single biggest issue in 2028 is Israel and/or Jews, those votes won’t be coming from the Republican side. Carlson’s spot on the horseshoe is significantly closer to the radicals on the left than MAGA voters on the right.
He’s more aligned with Graham Platner than Donald Trump.
So have a great holiday weekend. Enjoy Independence Day. Go eat BBQ and watch the fireworks. Happy 250th birthday, America!
And forget about panicking. What the mainstream media is selling as “bad news” won’t matter in 2028.
If anything, it’ll be a net-positive.
Lest you have doubt, remember what Rush Limbaugh said: “It’s never time to panic, folks. It’s never, ever gonna be time to give up on our country, It will never be time to give up on the United States. It will never be time to give up on yourselves.”
Yeah. That’s the kind of message that belongs on TV.
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