House GOP leaders distance themselves from Limbaugh ‘slut’ comments

{mosads}A spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) did not comment on Limbaugh’s remarks.

During his shows on Wednesday and Thursday, Limbaugh called Fluke a “slut” and said she should release sex tapes in exchange for receiving birth control without a co-pay.

“I will buy all of the women at Georgetown University as much aspirin to put between their knees as they want,” Limbaugh said on Thursday’s show, channeling earlier comments from a prominent donor to GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum, Foster Friess.

Even before Limbaugh jumped into the fray, House Democrats had raised more than $1 million off of the controversy surrounding the all-male panel on which Fluke wasn’t able to testify. And they’ve stepped up their campaign since Limbaugh launched his initial attack.

His comments are also another setback as the GOP tries to reframe the debate over the White House’s contraception mandate. Republicans argue that they’re not opposed to contraception and that the issue is fundamentally about religious freedom, not women’s health. But, like the all-male witness panel and the remarks from Santorum’s donor, Limbaugh’s commentary put the focus squarely on women.