Sponsors Pull Ads From Rush Limbaugh's Radio Show Over 'Slut' Comments - ABC News

Sponsors Pull Ads From Rush Limbaugh's Radio Show Over 'Slut' Comments

ProFlowers became the seventh sponsor to pull its advertising from Rush Limbaugh's radio program Sunday following continued pressure from their customers over Limbaugh's "slut" comments.

"Mr. Limbaugh's recent comments went beyond political discourse to a personal attack and do not reflect our values as a company," the Internet-based flower delivery company wrote in a statement on its Facebook page Sunday afternoon. "As such, ProFlowers has suspended advertising on The Rush Limbaugh radio program."

More than 7,000 people commented on the ProFlowers Facebook page about Limbaugh's tirade against Georgetown University Law School student Sandra Fluke, who testified in support of the Obama administration's requirement that all employers must include co-pay-free birth control under their health insurance coverage for employees.

On his radio show Wednesday, Limbaugh called Fluke a "slut" and a "prostitute" for telling Congress that her employee health plan should  cover the cost of birth control.

Quicken Loans, Sleep Train Mattresses, Sleep Number, LegalZoom, Carbonite and Citrix have also said they will pull their advertisements from Limbaugh's program.

"While Citrix obviously does not control any show's content or endorse opinions of their hosts, we do take the concerns of our customers seriously," Citrix's General Manager of Online Services Brett Caine posted Friday on the technology company's Facebook page. "When they are upset about something, we listen. After careful consideration, we have decided to discontinue our advertising on The Rush Limbaugh Show."

David Friend, the CEO of Carbonite, an online data backup provider, said in a statement on the company's Facebook page that he hoped his and other advertisers' decision to pull their ads from Limbaugh's show "will ultimately contribute to a more civilized public discourse."

"No one with daughters the age of Sandra Fluke, and I have two, could possibly abide the insult and abuse heaped upon this courageous and well-intentioned young lady," Friend wrote. "Mr. Limbaugh, with his highly personal attacks on Miss Fluke, overstepped any reasonable bounds of decency."

While Limbaugh has apologized for what he called his "insulting word choice," the conservative commentator is still drawing fire, particularly from Democrats.

Obama's senior campaign adviser David Axelrod told ABC's George Stephanopoulos that Limbaugh's comments were "vile and degrading," and that his "quasi-apology" also missed the mark.

This post was updated to reflect that seven, not six, companies have pulled their advertisements.