Famous American radio host Rush Limbaugh, a conservative right-wing figure on the airwaves for more than four decades and staunch supporter of Donald Trump, has died at the age of 70, his family announced on his Facebook page. 

"He supported me from the start. (He was) a great gentleman," Donald Trump responded by phone on Fox News.

"He was a unique guy. He had extraordinary insight," the former president also said, adding, "Rush was confident that we had won (the 2020 presidential election), and I'm sure of it. also by the way. I think we won in a big way. "

"His honor, courage, strength, and loyalty will never be replaced. Rush was a patriot, a defender of Freedom, and someone who believed in the greatness of our country," later said the former Republican president in a statement.

"Condolences" by Joe Biden

Rush Limbaugh revealed last February that he had advanced lung cancer on his radio show, often billed as the most watched talk show in the country.

He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in April by Donald Trump, the most important civil honor that can be bestowed on the United States.

Former Republican President George W. Bush also reacted by calling Limbaugh "a friend for the duration of my presidency."

"Even though he was brash, at times controversial, and always stuck on his ideas, he expressed his views as a voice for millions of Americans," added the 43rd US president.

"Condolences (of Joe Biden) go to the family and friends of Rush Limbaugh," White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said at a press conference.

Conspiracy theories

The host was so influential that he was once sarcastically referred to as "leader of the Republican Party" by Democrats.

A controversial figure, he has regularly been accused of spreading false information and conspiracy theories.

"Rush Limbaugh has built his career lying to his audience, stoking misogyny, and fueling racism," Angelo Carusone, CEO of Media Matters for America, a left-wing media observatory, responded in a statement.

"He entertained listeners by mercilessly mocking and slandering anyone who didn't look like his typical listener - straight, white, conservative, and male - and this cruelty eventually became a central pillar of modern conservatism," he adds. .

Regular targets of his programs, Rush Limbaugh did not hesitate to qualify feminists as "feminazis".

In 2008, before the presidential election which will see Barack Obama accede to the White House, he sneers when a person on his show compares the future first African-American president to a cartoon monkey.

15 million listeners

Four years later, before the re-election of Barack Obama, he caused a storm in the country by calling on the airwaves a "slut" and "prostitute" a student, Sandra Fluke, who came to Congress to defend a provision of the Obama administration in favor of contraception.

Born in 1951 in Missouri (central United States), Rush Limbaugh began his radio career in 1971 but suffered several failures in different stations.

In 1984, he was hired by a station in Sacramento, California, which was looking for a flamboyant style host.

His most iconic show, "The Rush Limbaugh Show" debuted in 1988, and quickly became one of the most popular on American radio.

This three-hour daily program was listened to on average by more than 15 million listeners in 2020.

With AFP

The summary of the week

France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you!

Download the France 24 application

google-play-badge_FR