Musician Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders released an open letter to President Trump, lauding him for giving conservative radio show host Rush Limbaugh the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Hynde, 68, tweeted her letter to the president on Monday, saying her father Melville “Bud” Hynde, who was a Marine, would have been thrilled with the president for awarding Limbaugh with the highest civilian honor in the nation.
“He loved listening to Rush, which is why I allowed my song, ‘My City Was Gone,’ to be used on his radio show,” she wrote of the song that has been a staple of Limbaugh’s show while noting that she and her father weren’t on the same page politically.
An open Letter to @realDonaldTrump, President of the United States.
Dear Mr. President,
I often think of how much my father, Melville “Bud” Hynde, who proudly served his country as a Marine on Guadalcanal, would have enjoyed your Presidency. [p1.]
— Chrissie Hynde (@ChrissieHynde) February 17, 2020
but isn’t that the American way? The right to disagree without having your head chopped off?
Soon, I will be participating in a protest in London against the extradition of #JulianAssange (@wikileaks). I know my father would be mortified, but I feel strongly enough to do [p3.]
— Chrissie Hynde (@ChrissieHynde) February 17, 2020
The open letter was far from the first time Hynde went on record about her late father’s love of Limbaugh’s radio show.
“My dad loved Rush Limbaugh,” she said in 2018.
She said after being criticized over Limbaugh using her band’s song on air: “We said if we ever get proceeds from it, we’ll send them to [People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals]. I don’t know because I don’t give a f—. The whole idea for me to be in a band is subversive. I’ll vote, but I’m not very vocal in my political opinions because I don’t give a f—.”
Hynde concluded in her Monday open letter that she would soon protest the extradition of Julian Assange in London, noting that her father would be “mortified” with her for that move.
“What I believe is the right thing; to protest further punishment of a man who sought to defend Freedom, albeit in a way you rightly disagree with. I know Mr. Assange broke the law (as i have done defending the treatment of animals) but I believe [p4.] he has been duly punished and should now be set free. Please consider my plea. Yours truly, Chrissie Hynde of @ThePretendersHQ (@MrsC_Assange),” she tweeted.
