How Muammar Gaddafi Launched Glenn Beck’s Political Career

Conspiracy alert! As unlikely as it sounds, Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader whose controversial address to the UN is likely to dominate the news cycle for some time to come, inadvertently helped launch Glenn Beck’s career as a political commentator. Here’s how:

From a great Salon article on Beck’s roots as a zoo crew radio DJ:

The birth of Glenn Beck as Radio Super Patriot can be traced to the morning of April 15, 1986. This was the morning after Ronald Reagan ordered U.S. warplanes to bomb Moammar Gadhafi’s Tripoli palace in response to the bombing of a Berlin nightclub frequented by U.S. servicemen … The only track receiving multiple plays [on Beck's show] was a New Wave-ish spoof titled “Qaddafi Sucks.” The song was a huge hit with listeners, dozens of whom called Beck to tell him how inspired they were by his patriotism. Caller after caller applauded him for “standing up for America.”

And there you have it. We haven’t been able to get our hands on a recording of “Qaddafi Sucks,” though we’ve tried. If you have a copy, please let us know.

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