Looking at the different reactions to the death of Rush Limbaugh, who lost his battle with cancer last week at the age of 70, we get an idea of how wide the division is between the liberal left and the conservative right in America.

From conservatives we saw heartwarming condolences and all types of tributes. A colleague called him the Babe Ruth of radio talk show hosts. President Trump, who awarded Limbaugh the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year, called him “a legend” who had an instinct for politics and street smarts that few people possess.

Liberal Democrats and social progressives saw him much differently. News outlets denigrated the radio icon with vile attacks and disrespect. The HuffPost headline referred to Limbaugh as the “bigoted king of Talk Radio,” calling him a “misogynist, homophobe and crank.”

President Biden, who preached unity before stepping into the White House, had no direct public comment but White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said he offered condolences to the Limbaugh family.

Limbaugh repeatedly claimed that the new president did not “legitimately” win the 2020 election and took some parting swings at Biden before his death. He lambasted the green new deal agenda, which targets fossil fuels and coal miners’ jobs, stating that there are a lot of people that voted for Biden - including coal miners - who have no idea what’s coming down the road.

Although Limbaugh’s words and bombastic style stirred liberals, he also had a very generous side that the liberal media ignored.

In 2008 Forbes named Rush one of the nation’s top philanthropic celebrity givers, stating that Limbaugh ranked fourth on the Most Generous Celebrities List. It said he donated $4.2 million - about 13 percent of the $33 million he earned in the previous year - to the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation, a charity that helps support the children of Marines or federal law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty.

After learning of Rush’s death, country singer John Rich recalled that in 2011 he took part in a “Celebrity Apprentice” event hosted by Donald Trump to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. Rich reached out to several friends to ask for donations, including Limbaugh.

Rich said Rush donated $100,000 under the condition that he remained anonymous.

There were numerous other charitable acts for which Limbaugh sought no credit or praise.

• Over a 26-year span, Limbaugh and his audience collectively raised more than $47 million for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, helping provide much-needed research and support for individuals and families affected by blood cancer diseases.

• As of December 2019, he raised over $5 million for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which supports the loved ones of first responders killed in the line of duty.

• In July 2018, Limbaugh and his wife donated $500,000 to the Dana Farber Cancer Clinic in Boston.

Concerning the nation’s current path, Limbaugh was not optimistic about closing America’s great political divide and even warned that the nation is moving toward secession.

Two years ago, as Limbaugh’s EIB Network began its 32nd year, he gave a somber report on the nation amid the violence and decline of a number of liberally run cities. He said that while liberal critics label conservatives as racists, sexists, or bigots - proclaiming themselves as owning all of the compassion and decency - their own cities have become drug-infested, feces-infested and rat-infested.

Ten years earlier in a famous speech before the Conservative Political Action Conference, Limbaugh laid groundwork for the upcoming new decade of conservatism.

He warned there cannot be a peaceful coexistence of two completely different theories of life, of government or how we manage our affairs. In this clash of opposing ideologies, he said something must give somewhere along the way.

Despite the dire prophecy, Limbaugh said he hadn’t given up the idea that conservatives are in the majority but that they had to be united to win.

Echoing the Founding Fathers and his beloved conservative star Ronald Reagan, Limbaugh maintained a hope and belief that it’s the average person who makes the country work.

He said that conservatives believe a person can be the best he or she wants to be if certain things - like onerous taxes, regulations and too much government - are just removed from their path.

By Jim Zbick | tneditor@tnonline.com