Rush Limbaugh, the radio’s influential conservative host, has died of lung cancer complications, his wife Kathryn announced Wednesday on his radio show. He was 70 years old.
“It is with deep sadness, I must share with you directly, that our beloved Rush, my wonderful husband, died this morning due to complications from Lung cancerShe said. As many of you know, losing a loved one is terribly difficult, even more so when that loved one is bigger than life. Rush will forever be the greatest of all time. “
“Despite being one of the most recognized powerful people in the world, Rush never let success change his core or his beliefs,” he added. “He was polite and respectful to everyone he met.”
Last February, Limbaugh broke the news of his cancer diagnosis to his listeners. “I can’t help but feel that I’m disappointing everyone with this. But the result is that I’ve been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer,” he said at the time.
A day later, former President Donald Trump awarded with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the country. Trump thanked Limbaugh for his “decades of untiring devotion” to the nation.
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The radio host found points in common with Mr. Trump, known for his large media presence and divisive comments, long before his presidency. Prior to the 2016 election, Limbaugh treated the former president as a serious candidate, expanding his platform to his millions of listeners. He praised Mr. Trump for his bombastic and “smart” media strategy.
Throughout the Trump administration, Limbaugh used his radio program to express his support for some of Trump’s most controversial political decisions.
Limbaugh, a native of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, began his radio career at age 16. After making his way from the stations, he went from disc jockey to radio host, plastering his broadcasts with sound effects and quick words, which move away from most broadcasts. While he left radio for a short time while struggling for widespread approval, he launched his eponymous radio program in 1988, which quickly became one of the most popular conservative gatherings.
Limbaugh was the winner of multiple broadcast awards, including admission to the Radio Hall of Fame and the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
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Limbaugh was the headline of his controversial comments and was routinely accused of bigotry, sexism and racism for his ardent statements. Over the years, he offered several apologies for accusing Michael J. Fox of exaggerating his Parkinson’s symptoms, calling him a law school student. Sandra Fluke a “whore” and “prostitute” and to promote the false theory that former President Barack Obama was not born in the US
Limbaugh was also a heavy smoker who enjoyed cigars. He often claimed that the medical risks of smoke and second-hand smoke were false and were suppressed by health officials.
In a 1991 interview with “60 minutes“Limbaugh acknowledged that other people have called him sexist and homophobic, which he denied.” I’m not one of those things. I am simply someone who sees the events of life and comments on them. I have my own version of what is right and wrong. “