Rush Limbaugh Apologizes for Calling Sandra Fluke a 'Slut'
March 3, 2012— -- Rush Limbaugh issued an apology today to the Georgetown law student he branded a "slut" in three days of attacks, after she argued to Congress that the expense for her birth control should be covered by her employer's health care plan.
He said he "did not mean a personal attack" on Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown student.
"My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir. I sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke for the insulting word choices."
The conservative radio host that throughout his career he has "illustrated the absurd with absurdity, three hours a day, five days a week. In this instance, I chose the wrong words in my analogy of the situation."
Limbaugh mocked President Obama on Friday, after the president called the young woman to thank her for testifying before Congress on the issue.
Shortly before Fluke gave an interview on the cable network MSNBC today, Obama called her to tell her that her parents should be proud of her for speaking out for women.
After learning of the president's phone call during his radio show today, a day after he chided Fluke over her sex life, Limbaugh made a kissing noise with his lips and mocked Obama.
"That is so compassionate. What a great guy," Limbaugh said. "The president called her to make sure she's OK. What is she, 30 years old? Thirty years old, student at Georgetown Law who admits to having so much sex she can't afford it."
In response to a question from ABC News' Jake Tapper, White House press secretary Jay Carney said Obama called Fluke to "express his disappointment that she has been the subject of inappropriate personal attacks and to thank her for exercising her rights as a citizen to speak out on an issue of public policy."
Limbaugh replied by arguing that Obama should return the $1 million donation that the comedian Bill Maher gave his super PAC.
"Will President Obama now give back the $1 million that Bill Maher just gave his super PAC?" Limbaugh said on his show. "You want to get some of the tapes that Bill Maher has called Sarah Palin? The 'c' word over and over again?"
Limbaugh continued to focus on Fluke today, saying she "hilariously" testified to Congress that "she's having so much sex" that health insurance should cover her birth control.
"Not one person says, 'Well, did you ever think about maybe backing off the amount of sex you have?'" Limbaugh said.
He added that Democrats "want to blame me as being the person they should fear."
Limbaugh first thrust himself into the center of the contraception debate on Wednesday when he called Fluke a "slut" on his radio show for arguing to Congress that the expense for her birth control should be covered by her employer's health care plan.
As the Senate voted down a Republican effort that would have allowed employers not to cover contraception in their health plans, Limbaugh enraged the left by saying that Fluke was "having so much sex she can't afford her own birth control pills and she agrees that Obama should provide them, or the pope."
Thursday night, a bomb squad was called to Limbaugh's house to investigate a suspicious package that was determined to contain nothing harmful. Limbaugh said on his show today that "it would send chills up your spine if I were to tell you what the package actually contained."
In an interview with Tapper, Fluke expressed great appreciation for support she's gotten across the country. At her Georgetown campus, many students sided with her.
