24 Actor Says Rush Limbaugh Forcibly Kissed Her in Public: ‘Intentional for Him, and Accidental for Me’

 
Rush Limbaugh kisses 24 actor Mary Lynn Rajskub

Win McNamee/Getty Images

24 actress Mary Lynn Rajskub has opened up about the time Rush Limbaugh gave her a surprise kiss during a forum on the series.

Rajskub recalled the moment in her new book, FAME-ISH: My Life at the Edge of Stardom, which The Daily Beast published an excerpt from on Thursday.

“In June 2006 I was invited to go to Washington, D.C., and participate in a forum about 24,” explained Rajskub, who portrayed Chloe O’Brian in the series.

“The show had a strong conservative audience that consisted of not only regular TV viewers but also people in Washington. They liked the show’s nationalistic themes and the accurate depictions of the complexity and seriousness of homeland security work.”

Rajskub went on to share that the event was hosted by a right-wing policy think tank, adding that the forum was “really just an excuse for them to get people from the show they loved to the Capitol.”

Before the dinner, in which Rajskub was seated next to former Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff, the actress joined a panel featuring others on the 24 team.

That panel was moderated by Limbaugh, who kissed Rajskub on the mouth while greeting her:

What I do recall is at the beginning of the panel, Rush Limbaugh walked behind us and introduced everyone. When he got to me, his way of saying ‘hello’ was to bend down behind me. I turned to look up and that’s when it happened. When I turned he was coming down to give me a kiss… on the lips?! I have no idea how he got his body around so quickly for a full-on kiss. As it happened, tons of camera flashes went out. He had to have known what he was doing. He knew there were 10 photographers there—I did not. I should have but I didn’t. I also didn’t know how to stop the kiss from happening.

Rajskub went on to lament how the kiss briefly took over the news cycle, with many assuming she was a “right-wing darling,” while others, including an ex-boyfriend of hers, believed she was dating Limbaugh at the time.

“In one shrewd move of his, an image went out into the world that showed I was a supporter of the right-wing cause. I was not,” she wrote. “It also showed I found Rush Limbaugh attractive. I did not. The kiss was weird. Intentional for him, and accidental for me.”

Tags: