Florida House of Representative passed a bill to rename a highway named after the late conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh.
The proposed bill will have Limbaugh’s name in Hernando County, Florida between highway U.S. 41 and S.R. 50/50A as “Rush Limbaugh Way.”
The bill was passed on 87-25 vote that had main opposition from the Democrats in the House.
Democrats opposed the measure as an outcry accusing him of his past racist comments on air. Limbaugh often criticized the Democratic Party that was in opposition to his views.
“The disrespect has to stop,” said Florid State Rep. Angie Nixon, who opposed the bill naming the highway after Limbaugh. “I can’t believe that we are honoring a racist. That’s ridiculous in and of itself. And you wonder why we. Don’t want to break bread with you all because you to support and endorse racism. That’s ridiculous. And calling it a political issue? That’s a moral issue, through and through.”
Nixon would take a swipe at Florida State Rep. Alex Andrade alluding to racism being a political issue. She would accuse Limbaugh of being a racist as she said, “politics shouldn’t play a role in transportation designations.”
Limbaugh was the conservative icon who started his career in the 1970s at a radio station in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, but later moved to ABC Radio in the late 1980s.
He gained notoriety during his support for the Gulf War after gaining opposition from peaceful protestors.
The Rush Limbaugh Show originated in the KFBK Network in Sacramento, California then was syndicated nationally on WABC in New York as it was also syndicated on WJNO in West Palm Beach, Florida. Limbaugh settle in Palm Beach County, Florida for the rest of his life. The EIB
Radio Network (Excellence In Broadcasting), that was his production company) was aired on a network approximately 650 AM and FM affiliated stations throughout the United States.
Limbaugh had previously interviewed conservative politicians and Supreme Court justices that included Ronald Reagan, Antonin Scalia, and George W. Bush. His guests were only conservative politicians and public figures.
Former President Donald Trump awarded Limbaugh a Presidential Medal of Freedom at the State of the Union in 2020.
The conservative icon died in Palm Beach, Florida at the age of 71 on February 17, 2021, where he lost his battle to lung cancer.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was a frequent guest of Limbaugh every week during the 2018 Florida gubernatorial election against his opponent, former Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum.
“He had me on when I was running for Governor,” DeSantis said in description of his gubernatorial race. “I was getting the tar kicked out of me every day, and he had me on the week before the election in 2018. He didn’t have a lot of guests. I was honored to be on his show a couple of times.”
DeSantis had the flags half-staff in honor of Limbaugh.
The Florida governor is poised to sign the bill once it’s passed in the state Senate.
Edited by Newsdesk Manager and Virginia Van Zandt
