Feb. 17 (UPI) -- Longtime conservative commentator and radio show host Rush Limbaugh has died at the age of 70, his wife announced Wednesday on his program.
Limbaugh, who has long been considered one of the country's top conservative pundits and Republican supporters, had been receiving treatment for lung cancer.
A statement posted to his website stated, "In loving memory of Rush Hudson Limbaugh III, the greatest of all time."
Limbaugh received the Presidential Medial of Freedom from President Donald Trump last year, and announced that he had terminal lung cancer last fall.
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The Missouri native was an enthusiastic supporter of Trump's and drew criticism last month when he compared rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol to "patriots" of the Revolutionary War.
Several prominent Republican politicians praised Limbaugh upon news of his death Wednesday.
"RIP to a legend and a patriot," tweeted Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. "Not many people can say they revolutionized and stayed at the top of an industry the way he did."
"Rush is the [greatest of all time] of radio, of conservative media and of inspiring a loyal army of American patriots," added Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Limbaugh was particularly critical of former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama during their eight years in the White House, as well as President Joe Biden.
At the age of 20, Limbaugh began his radio career in 1971 as a disc jockey at Pennsylvania station WIXZ. He launched an afternoon radio show in Kansas City four years later, followed by stops in Sacramento and New York City before his program went into syndication.
