Limbaugh on torture of Iraqis: U.S. guards were "having a good time,"
"blow[ing] some steam off"

Wednesday May 5, 2004 at 3:05 PM EST

Hours before President George W. Bush announced plans to address
the Arab world to condemn the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S.
military personnel at the Abu Ghraib prison, Rush Limbaugh justified
the U.S. guards' mistreatment of the Iraqis, stating that they were
just "having a good time," and that their actions served as an
"emotional release."

As reported by Wonkette.com, Limbaugh's comments can be found on
his website. From the May 4 Rush Limbaugh Show, titled "It's Not About
Us; This Is War!":

CALLER: It was like a college fraternity prank that stacked up
naked men --

LIMBAUGH: Exactly. Exactly my point! This is no different than
what happens at the Skull and Bones initiation and we're going to ruin
people's lives over it and we're going to hamper our military effort,
and then we are going to really hammer them because they had a good
time. You know, these people are being fired at every day. I'm talking
about people having a good time, these people, you ever heard of
emotional release? You of heard of need to blow some steam off?

The day before, on his May 3 show, Limbaugh observed that the
American troops who mistreated Iraqi prisoners of war were "babes" and
that the pictures of the alleged abuse were no worse than "anything
you'd see Madonna, or Britney Spears do on stage."

LIMBAUGH: And these American prisoners of war -- have you
people noticed who the torturers are? Women! The babes! The babes are
meting out the torture.

You know, if you look at -- if you, really, if you look at
these pictures, I mean, I don't know if it's just me, but it looks
just like anything you'd see Madonna, or Britney Spears do on stage.
Maybe I'm -- yeah. And get an NEA grant for something like this. I
mean, this is something that you can see on stage at Lincoln Center
from an NEA grant, maybe on Sex in the City -- the movie. I mean, I
don't -- it's just me.