HOW ‘AFRAID’ ARE THEY?…. Mort Kondracke told Fox News last night that the Republican Party’s leadership “is afraid of Rush Limbaugh, frankly.” As a test to see just how afraid GOP leaders are, the DCCC is pressing Republicans on denouncing some of the radio host’s over-the-top rhetoric on Nazis.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) targeted 35 Republican House members including Minority Whip Eric Cantor to publicly rebuke comments conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh made comparing the Democratic Party to the World War II-era Nazi Party.

“While Congressman Eric Cantor has refused to condemn Rush Limbaugh’s hateful comparison of Democrats to Nazis for four straight days, that hasn’t stopped him from criticizing the President while standing on foreign soil,” said DCCC spokeswoman Jennifer Crider in a release on Monday.

“Congressman Eric Cantor needs to finally show some courage and immediately stand up to Rush Limbaugh and condemn his outrageous comments,” she added.

It’s not just Cantor. The Democratic committee is pressing 35 other House Republicans, asking each of them to have the courage to “condemn” Limbaugh’s remarks. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) was singled out.

If I were a betting man, I’d wager that GOP leaders will not distance themselves from the right-wing blowhard. Why would they bother? If recent history is any guide, they’d only have to apologize to Limbaugh 24 hours later, anyway.

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Follow Steve on Twitter @stevebenen. Steve Benen is a producer at MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show. He was the principal contributor to the Washington Monthly's Political Animal blog from August 2008 until January 2012.