Donald Trump leads tributes to Iconic right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh

Rush Limbaugh has died aged 70

Credit: Eric Risberg/AP

Donald Trump on Wednesday night paid tribute to Rush Limbaugh, the iconoclastic right-wing radio host who dominated the conservative airwaves for more than three decades, who died after a lengthy battle with lung cancer.

Bombastic in style, he set the tone for a generation of firebrand talk show hosts that followed.

His formula struck a chord with Americans with his radio show shattering listening figures, reaching an estimated weekly audience of 15.5 million.

It made him very wealthy with Forbes magazine estimating his earnings at $84.5 million. Mr Limbaugh, 70, was a staunch supporter of Mr Trump to the end, endorsing the mob of his supporters who stormed the Capitol building on January 6.

“There’s a lot of conservatives… who say that any violence or aggression at all is unacceptable, regardless of the circumstances," he said on his radio show.

"I am glad Sam Adams, Thomas Paine, the actual tea party guys, the men at Lexington and Concord didn’t feel that way.”

Rush Limbaugh was a staunch supporter of Donald Trump

Credit: Nicholas Kamm/AFP

Mr Trump called into Fox News on Wednesday to describe him as a unique person whose show was “like a religious experience” for listeners.

"He is a legend. He really is. There aren’t too many legends around. But he is a legend," Mr Trump said. "And those people who listen to him every day, it was like a religious experience for a lot of people."

The former president  added later: " The great Rush Limbaugh has passed away to a better place, free from physical pain and hostility. His honor, courage, strength, and loyalty will never be replaced.

"Rush was a patriot, a defender of Liberty, and someone who believed in all of the greatness our Country stands for. Rush was a friend to myself and millions of Americans—a guiding light with the ability to see the truth and paint vivid pictures over the airwaves."

Mr Limbaugh helped spread "birther" theories that president Barack Obama was born outside the United States, and contended that mosque shootings in New Zealand, which killed 51 Muslims, were staged by a leftist to attack conservatives.

He also coined the term "femi-Nazis" to disparage women’s rights activists. Mr Limbaugh in 2012 called a law student who spoke to a congressional hearing about birth control a "slut," causing some sponsors to pull their advertising from his show.

In February last year, the day after Mr Limbaugh told his listeners that he had advanced lung cancer, Mr Trump awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom hailing the radio host as "the greatest fighter and winner you will ever meet."

Mr Limbaugh’s career started in small local radio stations in the 1970s. His big break came in 1988 when his show was syndicated nationally.

He was one of several beneficiaries of the Reagan administration’s repeal of the Fairness Doctrine which required broadcasters to provide free airtime for opposing views.

Unrelentingly provocative Mr Limbaugh regularly lambasted liberal causes, taking aim at feminism, climate change and homosexuality. He attracted fierce criticism over his career from Americans outraged by his statements.

"He made our politics more toxic and contributed to the dangerous levels of polarisation that dominate our public discourse today," Media Matters watchdog group said in statement.