Rush Limbaugh Explains The Meaning Of The Statue Of Liberty

by Steven Jessop | 6:00 pm, July 1st, 2010

» 14 comments

In response to President Obama invoking the image of the Statue of Liberty during his speech on immigration today, Rush Limbaugh took the time to inform his listeners of the true meaning of the big green broad by proving that she “was never meant to be a symbol of immigration.”

According to Limbaugh, “Lady Liberty is stepping forward. She is meant to be carrying the torch of liberty from the United States to the rest of the world. The torch is not to light the way to the United States.” His most effective argument is that the famous poem by Emma Lazarus (“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses…”) that most people associate with the Statue of Liberty wasn’t originally on the statue. Instead, it was placed inside the base of the statue years after it was built. And how is an immigrant going to see it from a boat if it’s all the way in there? That scene at the end of Titanic when Rose looks up at Lady Liberty will never be the same.

We could transcribe the entire segment (in which Limbaugh throws out every fact he knows about the statue other than its exact dimensions, along with a charming fart noise to accompany a brief Elena Kagan shout-out), but it’s much more riveting when heard in his own voice:

Emma Lazarus, immigration, Immigration Reform, President Barack Obama, Rush Limbaugh, Rush Limbaugh Criticizes Barack Obama, Statue of Liberty

MichelleF

Steven,
You left out the part that Obama misquoted what’s printed on the SOL and it was also misprinted on the WH website. Just image if that had been Bush. I’ll bet Mediaite would’ve had it on the front page!
tjl

Ah, soak it in idiots… I mean, dittoheads. The lord has spoken. Do not be afraid to quote him to your friends and family. Just make sure that they aren’t educated. That might be a little embarrassing.
murf

You have to wonder about people like tjl , –it’s amazing you do not have a huge following or a national platform to educate all us idiots. Where could one learn more about your genius ideas an beliefs?
MichelleF

Actually, I was wondering who told tjl he was so smart.
bamman

Glenn Beck made the same points in his Feb, 2010 CPAC speech. A good article about it can be found at [url=http://www.diggersrealm.com/mt/archives/003324.html]http://www.diggersrealm.com/mt/archives/003324.html[/url].
bamman

Glenn Beck made the same points in his Feb, 2010 CPAC speech. A good article about it can be found at http://www.diggersrealm.com/mt/archives/003324.html .
Level Headed American

I had a hard time counting how many times he said “France” in his rant.
MarcG

“Congress, in 1956, took further steps to emphasize the statue’s association with the ideals of liberty and opportunity and with the immigrants attracted to our shores by their promise. The legislators, in a joint resolution, gave their approval to the plans of a group of private citizens to finance and help the Park Service develop a museum of immigration at the base of the statue, and they authorized changing the name of the home of the monument from Bedloe’s to Liberty Island. The joint resolution stated, “. . .the Statue of Liberty is to the world the symbol of the dreams and aspirations which have drawn so many millions of immigrants to America” and “the majestic meaning of the Statue of Liberty is to be made more brilliant by the establishment at its foot of the American Museum of Immigration.” ” From : http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/stli/adhi1.htm
http://www.facebook.com/people/Kevin-Zimmerman/10028160 Kevin Zimmerman

Oh Rushbo. You forgot to say that the pedestal was constructed by liberals and homosexuals intent on keeping lady liberty from ever leaving this country, to spread her light of freedom and democracy around the world. In fact you might even say we have imprisoned her against her will, similar to Hitler and Nazi Germany. OMG, Emma Lazarus was a prescient female Hitler and her communist-fascist-naziist manifesto has tainted the inner bronzed wall of the pedestal of our country’s most iconic symbol of laissez-faire economics and oh the socialism! Progressivism! and all the Elena Kagans in the world have come to ruin our country! Rushbo please step up and lead your country forward to the promised land!! Please!!!!!
Bootleghaircut

yawn…
murphy0071

Rush Limbaugh is damaged goods. He took enough downers to sink the Titanic and knock out the Statue of Liberty. His diatribes against progressives is all part of a show. Now, that he is getting married maybe he can stay home and have his wife run out for oxy instead of a maid.
orionantares

MichelleF said:
Steven, You left out the part that Obama misquoted what’s printed on the SOL and it was also misprinted on the WH website. Just image if that had been Bush. I’ll bet Mediaite would’ve had it on the front page!

I don’t know that confusing “breathe” with “be” is quite as bad as something like confusing the Deceleration of Independence with the preamble of the U.S. Constitution while holding the document up for the crowd like a relatively recent Repub leader’s speech, that wasn’t Bush, misquoted.

And the “screw-up” on the website, isn’t that simply a transcript of what he spoke? Transcripts don’t get changed because something was spoken incorrectly.
michiganruth

yeah, Beck’s speech was great, and his reading of the poem was inspiring. his point was that Lady Liberty isn’t saying “give me the drecks of humanity because we want drecks here,” but rather “EVEN the drecks of humanity can make it in America because America provides opportunity for all.”

this whole idea of conflating “immigration” with “ILLEGAL immigration” is a lefty straw man. nobody is against immigration…but most Americans are against illegal immigration. that’s a distinction it isn’t useful for Obama to make–so he doesn’t make it.
Founders_were_Liberal

I guess if the famous poem was added later and has no relevance to the SOL’s original intent, then adding “under God” to the pledge of allegiance also means nothing.
Drug Limbaugh once again takes the hypocrite cake.