News briefs – Rush’s commercials more popular than Rush, 1,000 word picture, new magic act of Penn and Bush?

Rush beaten by his own down time

That’s right, Rush Limbaugh, Talent on Loan from a Cesspool™ gets worse ratings than the commercials on his own show. That gives a whole new meaning to Pilodinal Bloviating.

Coleman insights, who did the study, claims that because “dittoheads” (from being hit in the head with a ditto machine many years ago) actually are tuning in during commercials, they’re so anxious to hear Rush.

The sign that speaks 1,000 words

Gee, Terry McAuliffe, aren’t you Hillary Clinton’s campaign chairman?

Bush and Penn tag-team on Columbia?

President Bush has given Congress 90 days to pass a free trade deal with Columbia. No word if he has hired Mark Penn, the “I’m not quite resigned yet” former chief strategist for Sen. Hillary Clinton, who got into hot water (briefly) over his open support for the deal, which she opposes.

Speaking of that, no word has leaked out from the Clinton campaign as to whether or not Penn was asked to stop his Burton-Marsteller lobbying for the Columbia deal.

Mark Penn quits - political cluelessness

I’m sure many Democrats who have supported Hillary Clinton would have invented a “Columbia flap” long ago, had they known that would have been enough to force him out.

As most political-watchers know, Clinton campaign strategist Penn got in trouble last week after meeting with Columbian Ambassador Carolina Barco Isaksonon behalf of Penn private-sector employer Burton-Marsteller, touting a free trade treaty with Columbia that Clinton opposes.

But, political insiders have also known that Burton-Marsteller’s client list, many of them antiunion companies, has been problematic for Clinton for some time.

However, Penn will remain chief pollster for Clinton.

Like her dismissal of Patti Solis Doyle as campaign manager, this is months too late for Clinton to catch Barack Obama. And, probably too late to totally undo damage in Pennsylvania.