In this Fox News op-ed, Mike Pence is at his cloying best. His tribute to Rush is rather difficult to get through in one, uninterrupted reading, for the reader is forever reaching for Kleenex and constantly challenged to imagine a more affected eulogy, while wondering, upon virtually every sentence, if so much as a tiny drop of self-parody was omitted by Mr. Pence.
Just a few of Mike's words of whopping sentimentality:
* Rush Limbaugh gave voice to the ideals and values that made this country great.
* He was … fiercely devoted to this country and its values and dedicated his life to promoting and protecting them.
* Limbaugh was a genuinely good man, who had a heart for our country and the American people.
* The debt that conservative Americans owe to Rush Limbaugh can only be repaid by relentless imitation of his example.
I shall leave up to you the hmmm, deeper meaning of Mike's remark that "so many tributes have been spoken and written about Rush since his death and all of them are true." That latter part would, perforce, include mine.
And of course never let it be said that Mike Mike Mike would overlook the thumpers: "The Bible says that 'The Lord is close to the brokenhearted'…. God bless Rush Limbaugh."
The most amusing angle of Mike's super-saccharinated sendoff — truly, something akin to an airline stewardess' immensely heartfelt "Buh-bye" — is that he's skipping out on attending CPAC's black mass this weekend, largely because the very people who worship Rush Limbaugh might string him up.
Were I of Mike Pence's hopeless groveling, I too would make myself scarce. But then again, I never would have behaved as Mike Pence has behaved.