Conservative talk show radio host and Republican party icon Rush Limbaugh has died. He was 70 years old.
His wife Kathryn announced his passing on his radio show Wednesday, saying Limbaugh died earlier this morning.
“Rush will forever be the greatest of all time,” she said.
Bo Snerdley, Limbaugh’s longtime producer and call-screener, tweeted: “God Bless you Rush. I love you. Always and ever.”
Limbaugh had been battling advanced lung cancer since February.
Back in October, Limbaugh provided this somber update on his show: “You know, I wake up every day and thank God that I did. I go to bed every night praying I’m gonna wake up. I don’t know how many of you do that, those of you who are not sick, those of you who are not facing something like I and countless other millions are.”
Former President Donald Trump awarded Limbaugh the Medal of Freedom during his most recent State of the Union address
This appearance came only a few days after his he revealed his diagnosis on his show.
“I can’t help but feel that I’m letting everybody down with this, but the upshot is that I have been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer,” Limbaugh said in February.
“The Rush Limbaugh Show” first aired in 1988, eventually reaching an estimated 15-point-five-million people each week
Limbaugh began working at the local radio station in his hometown of Cape Girardeau, Missouri at age 16. It’s there where passion for radio was born.
He soon left home to pursue a broadcasting career, but it wasn’t as easy as he may have thought.
Stations in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Kansas City, Missouri fired him for being **too** controversial.
After a five-year pause from radio, Limbaugh caught what would end up being his big break.
Sacramento station KFBK hired him in 1985, and within a year, he shot to the top of the ratings.
But Limbaugh was no stranger to controversy — many, involved comments and attacks on liberals and minorities.
In 2003, while working as a sports analyst for ESPN, he caused an uproar after making race-related comments about Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb. He resigned from the network.
And in 2006, after a stint in rehab, police arrested Limbaugh saying he illegally obtained prescriptions from multiple doctors. He ultimately reached a deal with prosecutors.
Despite such controversies, Limbaugh was ubiquitous in Republican circles and a giant in radio, earning upwards of $50 million a year.
In 1994, he was credited with helping the GOP win control of both houses of Congress, Four years later he was a key figure in the efforts to impeach President Bill Clinton.
He was also a major supporter of the administration of President George W. Bush, as well as a vocal advocate for President Donald Trump.
Ronald Reagan called Limbaugh the No. 1 voice of conservatism in our country. Many Democrats considered him the most dangerous man in America.
