Rush Limbaugh issued a rare apology this afternoon to Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown Law School student he called a “slut” and a “prostitute” after she testified before Congress in favor of contraception coverage in health insurance. Although Limbaugh has a long history of hate mongering, these remarks were so over the top that he ignited a media firestorm, lost several advertisers and drew condemnation from both sides of the political aisle. I can assure you that if this were a liberal on the hot seat, this would be the top story 24/7 on Fox. But you’ll need your reading glasses to find the news of Limbaugh’s apology on FoxNews.com and you won’t find it at all right now on Fox Nation. UPDATED. UPDATE 2.

Nothing brings out the manly men from Fox Nation than women who dare to articulate a position in support of women's reproductive rights. Obviously, these Neanderthals live (or want to live) in  a world where their women, as was said in that country song, put their biscuits in the oven and their buns in bed. As such, they loathe Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown law student (what a snob!) who spoke about how lack of access to affordable contraception endangers women's health. But Rush Limbaugh, a manly man whose trip to the Dominican Republic included a healthy dose of Viagra - covered under many health insurance plans - saw things differently and called her, and women who support access to contraception, a bunch of sluts. Fox Nation is providing an ongoing transcript for Rush's commentary. Not surprisingly, his Fox Nation followers, who also live in a fantasy world of women as handmaidens and happy brood mares, attacked this woman who dare speak out against the sacred patriarchy. While most of the comments were of the standard she-should-keep-her-legs-closed, there was one comment that was particularly vile.

You just can't make it up. While those who oppose misogyny are incensed by Rush Limbaugh's extraordinarily offensive and sexist commentary about how "sluts" like Sandra Fluke and those women who support the HHS birth control mandate should post sex videos of themselves on the internet, Fox Nation has a transcript of his comments that include the sex tape reference. It's titled "Limbaugh Takes Blowtorch To Fluke "Slut" Controversy." It is followed by equally misogynistic and offensive commentary from the Fox Nation denizens about women needing to keep their legs together. Remember folks, this is the blog for "those opposed to intolerance." Once again, we are reminded that despite Steve Doocy and the religious right, who say that the HHS mandate is a "war on religion," the reaction to it is really a war on women who speak out on behalf of reproductive rights. Only in the bizararo world of right wing machismo are such women considered "sluts." (The early suffragettes endured the same taunts) Limbaugh "jokes" about her having constant sex; but nowhere in Ms. Fluke's testimony did she reference her own sexual activity. "Fair & Balanced" Fox Nation, however, has not provided a transcript of her testimony. Nice to see that Fox "News" is aiding and abetting the Rush Limbaugh's misogyny and lies.  

It was only a matter of time before Sean Hannity and Fox News found an excuse to use Andrew Breitbart’s death to play the conservative victim – and I don’t mean because of any grieving. Sure enough, Hannity dredged up a Rolling Stone article called Andrew Breitbart: Death of a Douche, distorted its content, and then trotted out Ann Coulter last night for a right-wing bitch-a-thon about the sufferings of conservatives in the unfair world where only the left can spew hate. Hannity was not the only show to use the article for its own, anti-left agenda. The Five did the same thing earlier in the day. But unfortunately for conservative martyrdom, Coulter dropped a load of right-wing hate right in the middle of the segment - when she defended Breitbart calling Ted Kennedy a “pile of human excrement” shortly after his demise because he deserved it. Did Hannity object? Do you think Coulter will suffer any kind of Fox News disapproval? Don't hold your breath!

Yesterday The Five was all up in arms over a Rolling Stone column by Matt Taibbi called “Andrew Breitbart: Death of a Douche.”  Taibbi gave Breitbart a send-off not unlike the one Breitbart gave Senator Edward Kennedy when he died: full of invective, essentially dancing on his grave.  This was too much for Breitbart’s strongest defender, best friend Greg Gutfeld, who used Fox “News” airtime to retaliate.  The usual four suspects piled on to defend Breitbart, who must have lived a life beyond reproach.  However, one must always remember that to Fox “News,” defending a Conservative really means attacking the Left—all of the Left.  After about 3 minutes Bob Beckel had had enough: He tried to make the point—which he should be making daily, if you ask me—that you can’t blame all Liberals for the actions of one.  That’s when Andrea Tantaros proved she not only has a tin ear, but will never get irony. [Video below the jump]

Now that right wing boss Rush Limbaugh has attacked Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown student who spoke out in favor of women's reproductive rights, Fox Nation has joined the fun. They have posted a thread titled "Is Sandra Fluke A Fame Hungry Activist." The thread links to an article in the Washington Post article titled "Meet Sandra Fluke: The Woman You Didn't Hear At Congress' Contraceptives Hearing." The article is an interview with Fluke in which she describes how she wanted to share women's stories about lack of access to contraceptives and how those women, like the woman who lost an ovary, "suffered dire consequences." She also talks about "how willing some members of our government are to play political football with women’s health." Nothing in the article suggests that she is a "fame hungry activist." That is obviously the editorial position of the Fox Nation editors who are using the thread to incite even more hatred towards Fluke as shown in the comments of those who haven't read the article. And Fox Nation is a blog for those "opposed to intolerance." Give me a break!!!!!  Funny, the same question could be asked about actual right wing activists like sting videographers Lila Rose and James O'Keefe and could have been asked about Andrew Breitbart - but Fox Nation doesn't and didn't ask it.

As much of the country recoils in revulsion from Rush Limbaugh’s shockingly misogynistic attacks on Sandra Fluke, the young Georgetown Law student who testified before Congress about the need for women to have access to contraception, Fox News is siding with Limbaugh. Our Priscilla previously reported on Fox's Todd Starnes’ vile tweets in support of Limbaugh. Exhibit Number Two: Bill O’Reilly. O’Reilly didn’t directly address Limbaugh’s hideous rhetoric (though you know that no such reticence would have occurred had he been a liberal attacking a conservative). Instead, O’Reilly regurgitated Limbaugh’s arguments using slightly milder language. Rather than calling Fluke a "slut" outright - as Limbaugh did - O'Reilly merely implied it.

Fox Radio's Todd Starnes loves Jesus. As a decorated Christian warrior, he is vigilant about ferreting out those who wage war on Christians - especially those who, in the spirit of multiculturalism, wage war on Christmas. Todd is a traditional guy whose book, "Dispatches From Bitter America," is a compendium of the attacks being waged on his fellow traditionalists by atheists, liberals, gays, and transgender "Mary's." Like so many red blooded, conservative Christian guys, he yearns to return to a time when blacks knew their place and didn't "riot at Burger King" - a halcyon time when women were virgins until they married and became happy housewives who would never take birth control - never mind protesting the cost of it. So it's no surprise that good, Christian traditionalist Todd Starnes is supporting his fellow traditionalist, Rush Limbaugh, against those evil Feminazi sluts at Georgetown. Check out his tweets that Media Matters screen grabbed. Good Christian soldier Todd Starnes has joined the right wing misogynistic war on women. Be warned - the comments are really ugly.

On yesterday’s Your World, Barry Hinckley, a Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Rhode Island, appeared with his five-year old son, Hudson, to talk about Hudson's appearance in a campaign commercial for his dad. Naturally, the commercial was played at the beginning of the segment. Hudson was seen showing charts of the national debt and unemployment rising since he was born. "Our nations' problems are so simple apparently even a five-year old can spell it out for us," Cavuto said admiringly. Clearly, Hinckley was hoping to pimp his son for the sake of his candidacy. But how far did he go and how far is too far? Oddly, when Cavuto asked little Hudson questions, his father mouthed many of the answers as the child spoke. When Papa Hinckley didn’t, the son went off script.

As reported in the Rolling Stone article about Roger Ailes, Fox & Friends is "the morning happy-talk show that Ailes uses as one of his primary vehicles to inject his venom into the media bloodstream." As such, the show is a vehicle for whatever right wing memes need reinforcing. The hottest right wing meme in town is that the HHS contraception mandate is not a war on women, despite their use of contraceptive, but a war on religion - a position that is being promoted by the US Council of Catholic bishops and is being reinforced by what appears to be the bishops's personal program, Fox & Friends, which has done at least nine segments in total support of the bishops. Today, Ailes' "attack poodle," Steve Doocy (one of many conservative Catholics in Ailes' stable) articluated this meme during his interview with the right wing authors of a book about how the evil liberals are pushing around conservatives which speaks to another popular Fox meme about  conservative victimization which, as Jon Stewart notes, is the "true genius" of Fox News.