Does Limbaugh’s fourth marriage say more about him, or us?

Rush Limbaugh has been defended on these pages. As an avid job seeker, I even tried to get his attention. Despite his sometimes acerbic style, many of the qualities and ideals he espouses – patriotism, limited government, pursuit of excellence – I share.

Yet, it was always troublesome to listen to him after learning about his drug problems and multiple marriages. It wasn’t that there was no realization that, despite his great riches and popularity, he was human and, like all of us, capable of stumbling. But it was the inverse relationship between his apparent lack of humility in the face of his own shortcomings and his fiery rhetoric against those whose views differed with his.

Make no mistake. Many of those who were/are objects of his critiques gave as good as, or worse, than they got.

But this does not excuse the disconnect between his personal life and the positions he takes and defends. Indeed, was this not central to Limbaugh’s criticisms of President Bill Clinton, that character mattered not only in his role as the president but also in his personal life? Did Limbaugh not contend that character knows no bounds and that one could not “compartmentalize” it?

One never really knows about situations learned of from afar; what really happened in his previous marriages is known to him and his ex-wives. But now, Rush has married for the fourth time. And to someone 26 years his junior.

It is extremely difficult to simply overlook what, based on what we do know, appears to be a cavalier attitude toward marriage, the foundation of the family. And the family, in turn, is a foundation of America. It’s especially thorny to ignore this when the man publicly, loudly and repeatedly professes profound respect for America and what makes her great, while he also voices his often vehement disdain with those who disagree with him.

I do not doubt his love of country and his new wife. But the hurdle needed to be crossed to reconcile the gap between what he says and what he does is quite high.

Unfortunately, in the world of conservatism’s “superstars,” this is all too common. Of course, that raises a tougher question than whether they live as they preach. What does it say about those of us who have elevated them to such levels of power, wealth and respect?