Ben Sasse and Rush Limbaugh: Life with Dignity

As I am sure readers know, Ben Sasse is dying from pancreatic cancer. But that doesn't mean he is through. The former senator has refused to allow illness to push him into a darkened room. Instead, he has continued a very public life and conducted several candid interviews about his circumstances — perhaps most notably with our friend Peter Robinson on Uncommon Knowledge.

Sasse recently also launched a new podcast of his own, called (tongue in cheek) Not Dead Yet, co-hosted with NewsNation's political pundit Chris Stirewalt. The podcast is aimed at helping listeners live lives "of meaning, hope, and joy," no matter how long that life might last. (The comedian Conan O'Brien was the most recent guest.) Listening to Sasse, one can't help but be uplifted by his continuing good humor and undiminished gusto.

Sasse's sunny public face reminds me of the late Rush Limbaugh's last year of "excellence in broadcasting." Fans may remember him announcing on his show that he had terminal lung cancer. But that did not stop him. For about a year, El Rushbo continued on with his program — if anything, with greater energy than before — only taking time off periodically during "treatment week."