All the Rage-Who's stirring up the candidates more: MoveOn or Limbaugh?

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All the Rage
Who's stirring up the candidates more: MoveOn or Limbaugh?
By Christopher Beam, John Dickerson, Brad Flora, and Chadwick Matlin
Updated Friday, Oct. 5, 2007, at 3:58 PM ET

All the Rage: Republicans and Democrats are in an umbrage war and the GOP is winning. When MoveOn.org questioned Gen. David Petraeus in an ad in the New York Times, Republican presidential candidates raced to show their outrage. Now some Democrats are trying to offer a similar response to Rush Limbaugh, who used the phrase "phony soldiers" during a call-in conversation about American soldiers who oppose the war. Rep. Mark Udall authored legislation condemning the remarks, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sent a letter to Limbaugh's boss asking him to disavow them. (He didn't.) Limbaugh, for his part, fought back on his radio show—insisting that Democrats were trying to "smear" him and purposely taking his comments out of context. How did the 2008 Democratic presidential candidates respond? Only John Edwards showed the intensity that GOP candidates did over the MoveOn controversy. Here's a breakdown of how upset everyone is:

DEMOCRATS

Hillary Clinton
MoveOn: "I don't condone attacks on any American who has served our country honorably and with dedication the way General Petraeus has."
Limbaugh: Did not comment, but signed Sen. Harry Reid's letter.

Barack Obama
MoveOn: "General Petraeus has served this country honorably. And I think it probably was a distraction to try to attack him as opposed to George Bush's policies." Did not vote on Sept. 20 Senate measure to condemn MoveOn.org because "the focus of the United States Senate should be on ending this war, not on criticizing newspaper advertisements."
Limbaugh: Did not comment, but signed Sen. Harry Reid's letter.

John Edwards
MoveOn: Elizabeth Edwards: "Someone who's spent their life in the military doesn't deserve 'General Betray Us.' "
Limbaugh: Elizabeth Edwards called Limbaugh a draft dodger and said: "Rush Limbaugh should be ashamed of himself for calling brave members of our military 'phony soldiers.' There's nothing phony about the sacrifices being made by any of our troops in Iraq."

Bill Richardson
MoveOn: "They shouldn't have done it."
Limbaugh: Has not commented.

Joe Biden
MoveOn: "I think it was a mistake. But I don't think it's a capital offense."
Limbaugh: Has not commented.

Chris Dodd
MoveOn: "It is a sad day in the Senate when we spend hours debating an ad while our young people are dying in Iraq."
Limbaugh: Has not commented, but his spokesman said: "The comments impugn the patriotism and service of American troops simply because they have voiced their opposition to this failed policy. … (Limbaugh) has no idea what the brave men and women of our armed forces are ostensibly fighting for."

Dennis Kucinich
MoveOn: Has not commented, but was one of 79 congressmen to vote against condemning the ad in a Sept. 26 vote.
Limbaugh: Has not commented.

Rethugs at link~
http://www.slate.com/id/2175053/fr/flyout#Rage