I never listened to Rush as I was too young when he was in his hay day. By the time I was politically aware, he was doing the Neo-con bit and I was already finding better content on the internet.
With that said, I respect the hell out of him and am sad to hear his diagnosis. From what I understand, Rush paved the way for modern political talk radio and likely inspired a lot of other thinker on the right. Many of the great voices on the alternative right would likely not have had a platform if not for Rush laying a groundwork decades earlier. I tip my cap to him.
Back in the 90s, the libtards and Clinton were trying to pass "The Fairness Doctrine." Which basically would have required radio stations to give "equal" air time to libtards and shut down conservative commentary. The repeal of the Doctrine in the late 80s is the reason Rush came about. Rush fought hard against it on his radio show and promised to go rogue and continue broadcasting if Clinton passed it. Rush tore CLinton a new one on a daily basis, man it was awessome listening to him in the 90s. Still remember B.J. Clinton whining to the press about how "rush has 3 hours a day to bash me". Of course Rush played that clip on a reg. basis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FCC_fairness_doctrine#Opposition
The fairness doctrine of the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), introduced in 1949, was a policy that required the holders of broadcast licenses to both present controversial issues of public importance and to do so in a manner that was—in the FCC's view—honest, equitable, and balanced. The FCC eliminated the policy in 1987 and removed the rule that implemented the policy from the Federal Register in August 2011.[1]
The fairness doctrine had two basic elements: It required broadcasters to devote some of their airtime to discussing controversial matters of public interest, and to air contrasting views regarding those matters. Stations were given wide latitude as to how to provide contrasting views: It could be done through news segments, public affairs shows, or editorials. The doctrine did not require equal time for opposing views but required that contrasting viewpoints be presented. The demise of this FCC rule has been considered by some to be a contributing factor for the rising level of party polarization in the United States.[2][3]