Allen West is an Embarrassment

Freshman GOP Representative Allen West is a loose cannon and unfit for office.

Freshman GOP Representative Allen West is a loose cannon and unfit for office.

West first drew my attention back in October 2003, when he was still an active duty Army lieutenant colonel relieved from command and under investigation for aggravated assault in a case involving questioning of an Iraqi police officer. At the time, I observed, in response to John Cole’s ambivalence over the charges, “the Army can’t condone this conduct lest it become the norm. While West’s actions would not cause any negative reaction in most armies, a professional force can’t behave in this manner.”

West was ultimately adjudicated under an Article 15 hearing rather than a court martial, fined $5000, and allowed to retire with full benefits. Somehow, he persuaded people that he was a war hero and rode that to Congress–despite the local Veterans of Foreign Wars endorsing his opponent.

He’s made some curious statements in his short political career. For example, this past May, West suggested anti-war Congressmen should “get shot at a few times” to get a new perspective. But, while not exactly decorous, nothing truly outrageous until now. And, to be fair, he occasionally says something sensible, such as his smackdown of Newt Gingrich’s idea of making people pass a test to vote.

Yesterday, he engaged in a tirade against Debbie Wasserman Schultz in response to rather banal debating points:

“The gentleman from Florida. who represents thousands of Medicare beneficiaries, as do I, is supportive of this plan that would increase costs for Medicare beneficiaries, unbelievable from a Member from South Florida,” Wasserman Schultz said, saying the legislation “slashes Medicaid and critical investments essential to winning the future in favor of protecting tax breaks for Big Oil, millionaires, and companies who ship American jobs overseas.”

Her criticism of the legislation — more or less what most Democrats are saying today — provoked a furious response. West copied members of House Republican and Democratic leadership on the email, as well as his chief-of-staff, Jonathan Blyth.

The full email:

    • From: Z112 West, Allen
    • Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2011 04:48 PM
    • To: Wasserman Schultz, Debbie
    • Cc: McCarthy, Kevin; Blyth, Jonathan; Pelosi, Nancy; Cantor, Eric
    • Subject: Unprofessional and Inappropriate Sophomoric Behavior from Wasserman-Schultz

Look, Debbie, I understand that after I departed the House floor you directed your floor speech comments directly towards me. Let me make myself perfectly clear, you want a personal fight, I am happy to oblige. You are the most vile, unprofessional ,and despicable member of the US House of Representatives. If you have something to say to me, stop being a coward and say it to my face, otherwise, shut the heck up. Focus on your own congressional district!

I am bringing your actions today to our Majority Leader and Majority Whip and from this time forward, understand that I shall defend myself forthright against your heinous characterless behavior……which dates back to the disgusting protest you ordered at my campaign hqs, October 2010 in Deerfield Beach.

You have proven repeatedly that you are not a Lady, therefore, shall not be afforded due respect from me!

Steadfast and Loyal

Congressman Allen B West (R-FL)

This is conduct unbecoming a Member and in violation of House rules.

Much worse, though, is Allen’s July 18 posting on the Red County website titled “At this Point, Anyone with an Obama 2012 Bumper Sticker is a Threat to the Gene Pool” and decorated with a Soviet hammer and sickle. The text, frankly, is less inflammatory but not exactly laudable, either.

It was appalling to hear the President of the United States truly threaten our nation’s senior citizens and Military Veterans/Retirees. Furthermore, the blatant lie that 80% of Americans want their taxes raised is beyond unconscionable.

It’s also supportable by the same manipulation of poll results that Republicans use just as routinely.

I believe we are headed towards the ultimate ideological clash in America. There is a widening chasm which has developed between those who believe in principled fiscal policies and those desiring the socialist bureaucratic nanny-state. An unfortunate aspect to this is the complicity of a mainstream media which does not report facts, but rather ideological bias. This clash will determine the future and legacy of our Constitutional Republic.

Simplistic twaddle but standard red meat.

In the area of foreign policy, the United States has officially recognized the Libyan rebels as the “legitimate” government of Libya. Now, I am just a simple fella from down South, but I recall a previous Democrat President recognizing a bunch of undefined ideological zealots called the Taliban…and we all see how that ended up!

While I have misgivings about the Libyan rebels, they’re not the Taliban. Who, by the way, no American president ever recognized as the legitimate government. Indeed, only Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates ever did so.

I must confess, when I see anyone with an Obama 2012 bumper sticker, I recognize them as a threat to the gene pool.

This is the sort of thing we expect from drunken college students talking among fellow true believers; it’s a despicable statement coming from a Member of Congress. I’m guessing that, even in his solid Republican district, a fair number of his own constituents have Obama 2012 stickers.

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James Joyner
About James Joyner
James Joyner is Professor and Department Head of Security Studies at Marine Corps University's Command and Staff College. He's a former Army officer and Desert Storm veteran. Views expressed here are his own. Follow James on Twitter @DrJJoyner.

Comments

  1. ND says:

    *rode that to Congress

  2. mantis says:

    I’m guessing that, even in his solid Republican district, a fair number of his own constituents have Obama 2012 stickers.

    I’m sure they do. Of course, he doesn’t live in the district he represents. He lives in Wasserman Schultz’s district! Hilarious.

    Why are so many shining stars of today’s right wing nuts?

  3. hey norm says:

    Part of me pity’s him for his obvious cognotive shortcomings. But part of me loves a train wreck.

  4. FWIW,

    Larry Sabato and Charlie Cook both currently list FL-22 as a “toss-up” in 2012, and Cook lists it as a D+1 district. West is one of the freshman who will be vulnerable in 2012.

    Oddly, he does not live in the District he represents. He resides in the District represented by Debbie Wasserman-Schultz.. Apparently this is permitted under Florida law.

  5. I have seen him on TV a few times (something he rather seems to enjoy–so perhaps a talk radio gig or somesuch is in his future). I have always come away unimpressed.

  6. mike says:

    i agree – an accident waiting to happen

  7. Ron Beasley says:

    In today’s Republican party being ignorant and bat sh*t crazy is a feature not a bug.

  8. Pug says:

    Just another run-of-the-mill Tea Party nut.

    Nothing unusual here.

  9. JanetS says:

    I agree, he is a disgrace. It should also be noted that Sarah Palin backed him for office. Seems as though the House Republican leadership has been largely silent on this tirade and that’s inexcusable.

  10. Franklin says:

    He sounds a bit immature and not all that intelligent. He could easily be a regular commenter here like me.

  11. jukeboxgrad says:

    I recall a previous Democrat President recognizing a bunch of undefined ideological zealots called the Taliban

    As James pointed out, this is a falsehood. And it should be remembered that it was Bush who handed the Taliban a gift of $43 million four months before 9/11.

  12. jan says:

    @Ron Beasley:

    I think why so many liberals dislike Col West is because he is blunt, very blunt. Most politicians couch their words, posture their opinions so they will be acceptable to the very far left side of the aisle, creating a palatable distance of ideas from their opponents. Not so with Mr. West.

    Unlike Steven, I have come away very impressed with how West presents himself. His understanding of history, how it repeats itself (as related to our issues today), and the scope of our Middle Eastern problems has depth and lucidy. Again, he has been there and done that, which lends him experiential knowledge coupled with what he has intellectually has gained over his lifetime.

    Consequently, I think you underestimate this man and the appeal he has to more people outside the beltway, outside of this blog and the hemisphere in general.

    Going back to our budgetary problems and inherent disagreements, here’s a video of a candid but cynical discussion dealing with the debt ceiling, economy, clash of democratic & republican ideas and more from PJTV.

  13. mantis says:

    Consequently, I think you underestimate this man and the appeal he has to more people outside the beltway, outside of this blog and the hemisphere in general.

    Well, if he’s got appeal outside this hemisphere, he’s golden!

    Nice PJTV advertising by the way. I hope they’re paying you. Wait, what am I saying? Roger Simon doesn’t pay people who work for him.

  14. jukeboxgrad says:

    jan:

    here’s a video

    Whittle is a transparent liar. He is taken seriously only by fools. Linking to him doesn’t help your credibility.

  15. Frankly says:

    There was not a word West spoke that was not true!
    Schultz is a disgraceful woman.

  16. legion says:

    @jan: It isn’t his bluntness, it’s his obvious and offensive disrespect and lack of professionalism. The very idea that a man who trades on his background as a retired military officer could describe people who support the President – the Commander-in-Chief, as armchair hawks are so fond of reminding us Dirty Hippies – as “threats to the gene pool” is despicable. The man is classless, honorless, and a disgrace to both his old uniform and his current position as Representative. And yes, as a former military officer myself, I would gladly say that “to his face”.

  17. mattb says:

    I think why so many liberals dislike Col West is because he is blunt, very blunt. Most politicians couch their words, posture their opinions so they will be acceptable to the very far left side of the aisle, creating a palatable distance of ideas from their opponents. Not so with Mr. West.

    @jan: I wonder if you felt that “bluntness” was also a positive quality when it came to former Florida congressman Alan Grayson and Anthony Weirner (two of the more “blunt” house Democrats in recent years).

    Given the general blind partisanship of your posts I suspect that where West is “blunt,” if there’s a D next to the name, avoiding couching one’s words comes across as being an obnoxious loudmouth.

  18. Tlaloc says:

    I think why so many liberals dislike Col West is because he is blunt, very blunt. Most politicians couch their words, posture their opinions so they will be acceptable to the very far left side of the aisle, creating a palatable distance of ideas from their opponents. Not so with Mr. West.

    Or Allan Grayson. But neither comported themselves in the manner fitting a representative.

    His understanding of history, how it repeats itself (as related to our issues today), and the scope of our Middle Eastern problems has depth and lucidy.

    evidence please.

    Again, he has been there and done that, which lends him experiential knowledge coupled with what he has intellectually has gained over his lifetime.

    He has indeed been to the middle east and while there he embarrassed himself and us and got drummed out of the service for it.

  19. EddieInCA says:

    @jan:

    I think why so many liberals dislike Col West is because he is blunt, very blunt a moron.

    Fixed.

  20. Neil Hudelson says:

    Consequently, I think you underestimate this man and the appeal he has to more people outside the beltway, outside of this blog and the hemisphere in general.

    It always kills me when people think that they have the pulse of all of society. (And yes, progressives do it to).

    Jan, I live in very rural Indiana, deep deep in the heart of flyover country. I and all of my colleagues think this man’s words are disgraceful to the utmost degree. Most people in “the hemisphere” have a sense of common decency and decorum. Allen West and his supporters do not.

  21. Muffler says:

    @jan: I see a broad line between speaking your mind and acting like a rude child. If I got that email I would contact the police to have it on record. West strikes me as the kind of neighbor who would stop by your house at dinner time and throw your garbage cans because you didn’t like the color of his car. I say West has PTSD from the war and needs to seek some serious help.

  22. mattb says:

    BTW, just to be clear since I brought him up too, I totally agree with @Tlaloc::

    Allan Grayson [is blunt too]. But neither comported themselves in the manner fitting a representative.

  23. ponce says:

    Out of curiosity, which current Republicans do you admire, James?

    I bailed out of the party in 2003 when there were still a couple decent Republicans left.

    I can’t think of any today.

  24. Idiot says:

    So are Jim McDermott, Jim Moran, Sheila Jackson Lee, and Hank Johnson who thought Gaum might tip over… So was Patrick Kennedy, so was Cynthia McKinney, so was Allan Grayson.

    All of this begs the question – so what? While I would like some decency requirement for Congress among other jobs, there isn’t one.

  25. James Joyner says:

    @ponce: It’s a dwindling field, although there aren’t many nationally prominent politicians I admire, period, these days. Certainly, Huntsman strikes me as an admirable fellow. Romney is a little oily for my tastes but he’s bright and competent. Bobby Jindal is obviously a prodigy.

  26. Drew says:

    Every observation you make is true. Have you written a similar essay on, oh, say, Shiela Jackson Lee?

  27. Bill Jempty says:

    I live in West’s Congressional District.

    Before the 2002 redistricting, I lived in the district represented by Robert Wexler.

    And the parents of disgraced Congressman Mark Foley used to go to the same parrish as my wife Leonita and I. Leonita who works in the church office knew the Foleys but we never met the Congressman.

    One of the people lining up to run against West in 2012, is former West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel. I met Frankel at a 2005 golf tournament. She isn’t bat tahe crazy but she is close.

    Nuts on the left, nuts on the right, nuts all around me. No wonder I blog as The Florida Masochist.

  28. James Joyner says:

    @Drew: She’s so demonstrably a lunatic that it hardly bears calling her out. But, yes, we’ve made that known over the years. Here’s a 2007 post, for example, which mentions her dismissively. And in 2006, I mentioned her along with another dozen or so “loons” on the other side of the aisle.

    But the likes of Lee, Cynthia McKinney, and Maxine Waters are in a different camp. They’re crazies who got elected and stayed in office by pandering to a very narrow, radicalized constituency. Their Democratic colleagues roll their eyes at them while tolerating their presence.

    West, by contrast, has been touted as something of a rising star.

  29. Rob in CT says:

    Drew,

    I think the point that JJ and the other writers on this blog are trying to make is this:

    Any political party/coalition will have its loons. Some percentage of humans are loony, and democratic politics therefore means you get loons sometimes.

    The key is how you handle them. Do you embrace the crazy or marginalize it (or at least not encourage it)?

    I think (correct me if I’m wrong) JJ thinks that if the Right reigned in its loons, it might get more done and we’d all be better off for it. I’m not 100% sure of that, given that I’m not on the Right (at least not anymore, and I can’t see getting back there), but I think the general idea makes sense. In the same way, centrist Dems & progressives argue about the same thing. Do we want people who can get elected and support some of the stuff we care about, or do we want to go with somebody who may very well lose but lose pure? Or worse, win pure and screw things up by being a fanatic. On the one hand, of course you want your reps to have some freaking principles. On the other, rigid adherence to ideology doesn’t end well (GOP, right now).

  30. Gustopher says:

    I don’t see much difference between him and other Republicans these days, now that they’ve rebranded their crazies “Tea Party” and pretended that they are respectable.

    You roll in poo like a dog, you get covered in poo.

  31. @Doug Mataconis: Florida law doesn’t enter into it. The only qualifications for federal office are those specified under the Constitution (U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton), and for the House they are: 25 years of age, U.S. citizenship for 7 years, and residency of the state they will represent, all as of the day of taking the oath of office. West could live in Pensacola and still represent that district. (And given the nature of representatives’ jobs in the 21st century, state residency is effectively nominal/symbolic for many members anyway.)

    A potential source of confusion is that some state constitutions have district residency requirements for members of their legislatures, which due to gerrymandering can lead to some rather silly gamesmanship that the federal constitution in retrospect sensibly avoids.

  32. Jeff Quinton says:

    Not arguing any of the points you made except this one – 2010 proved that VFW endorsements are generally meaningless as far as veterans and military issues go.

    UPDATE: Here’s a link with more – http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/10/18/vfw-shuts-off-campaign-arm/

  33. Jeff Quinton says:

    @Chris Lawrence:

    Following up on this one – some states used to have at-large house elections – I don’t know what caused these to go away (if it was Voting Rights Act or something earlier.)

  34. @jan is a PJTV spammer. Plain and simple.

    But, on the off-chance that she is serious…

    Consequently, I think you underestimate this man and the appeal he has to more people outside the beltway, outside of this blog and the hemisphere in general.

    What does that even mean? I may be splitting hairs here, but people outside of our hemisphere don’t make any difference in this matter. Shoot, people outside of our country would likely have very little interest in what Rep. Allen West says/does, nevermind his (alleged) ‘appeal’.

    Postscript: Every time I see Allen West’s name in print, I think of this.

  35. @Jeff Quinton: It dates back before that; the prohibition on multimember districts is from the 19th century, with at-large districts only being used sparingly afterwards – essentially newly admitted states entitled to multiple representatives and states that gained representatives due to reapportionment but didn’t choose to redistrict/didn’t get around to redistricting.

    I think federal law still permits at-large districts under those circumstances, although realistically the only scenario that would call for it would be the admission of Puerto Rico or (even more hypothetically) a Canadian province with sufficient population to qualify for multiple representatives, and then only if the territorial legislature/constituent assembly that adopted the state constitution didn’t provide for a districting plan effective upon admission (presumably Congress would ask the new state to adopt districts from the outset).

  36. Barb Hartwell says:

    I think he is as crazy as all the other teaparty fools,and he is a thug also, a few months ago he had a radio talk show host arrested for asking him questions he did not like at a town hall meeting. He believes women should be submissive to their husbands He`s a short fuse cannon and pretty scary.

  37. ponce says:

    Certainly, Huntsman strikes me as an admirable fellow. Romney is a little oily for my tastes but he’s bright and competent. Bobby Jindal is obviously a prodigy.

    Nobody at the national level, then?

  38. James Joyner says:

    @ponce: I consider the presidential candidates “national level” politicians.

    Democrats control the executive, so that leaves Congress. And most Members are too obscure for me to know enough about them to admire. Of the Senate leadership, Mitch McConnell, Lamar Alexander and John Thune all strike me as perfectly solid. I don’t really know Kyl or Barrasso very well. Cornyn has odd views on some issues but is generally fine.

    I voted for McCain and admire a lot about him, although he’s a bit of a crank.

    I like what I’ve seen of Marco Rubio.

    I like Richard Lugar.

    Chuck Grassley seems fine.

    Snowe and Collins aren’t my speed ideologically but they’re upstanding Senators.

    Scott Brown is too new on the scene but seems fine.

    Lindsey Graham is reasonable.

    Orrin Hatch is quite sensible.

    But, even among Senators, there are more than a dozen Republicans about whom I have little or no knowledge. One casualty of my skipping the morning shows is that I see a lot less of the second- and third-tier Senators than I used to.

  39. ponce says:

    I consider the presidential candidates “national level” politicians.

    Just for throwing their hat in the ring?

    Can you name a single substantial “national” thing Mitt Romney has done?

    Orrin Hatch is quite sensible.

    I take it you haven’t heard him speak in a decade or two.

  40. Jeff Quinton says:

    @Chris Lawrence:
    Thanks for the comment, I thought it went farther back, I just remember seeing references to at-large representation in SC in the late 1800s and never remembered hearing when that ended.

  41. Pug says:

    @Drew:

    Can you cite for us an instance of Sheila Jackson Lee using language like that used by Alan West? Or is it that you just don’t like her?

    Please show us a quote where she called a colleague “vile” or “despicable”.

  42. Ironsides says:

    In all fairness to both sides, todays goings on in Washington are very benign compared to the debates of the early United States. Remember the Caning incident? how about the duels? It seems to me that people today are more apt to get their feel bads hurt when someone does not agree with them. I say we all get a thicker skin, take your lumps when they are due and be able to defend your position. I am 42 and a senior at a University. One thing that amazes me is when you ask someone what they believe, they can tell you, but ask them WHY they believe it and they are struck dumb (as in can’t speak). We need to stop being lemmings and start being individuals with all the rights and liberties accorded thereof. And speaking of rights, we need to stop with the thought that everything is a right, when most things are a privelage. Just because you want to do something doesn’t mean you can. If you are going to wrap yourself in the Constitution be prepared to wear it even if it doesn’t agree with you.

  43. JOE in LOS ANGELES says:

    @EddieInCA: Hey Eddie It’s kind of funny of how the liberals can talk all the trash they want, spread all the lies they want, but when it comes to the right stating facts, we get it all over like frosting on a cake. It’s time that we become more blunt. This is a REPUBLIC not a PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRACY..

  44. An Interested Party says:

    Hey Eddie It’s kind of funny of how the liberals can talk all the trash they want, spread all the lies they want, but when it comes to the right stating facts, we get it all over like frosting on a cake. It’s time that we become more blunt.

    Exactly what trash did Wasserman Schultz talk and what lies did she spread? Oh, and what facts did West state? This fool is certainly free to be as blunt as he likes, but it’s neither helping his case, nor, perhaps, his reelection chances…

  45. Tlaloc says:

    there aren’t many nationally prominent politicians I admire, period, these days.

    I rather like Governor Kitzhaber of Oregon.

  46. anjin-san says:

    I think why so many liberals dislike Col West is because he is blunt

    Norman Schwarzkopf is very blunt. And he endorsed McCain in ’08. And most liberals have a very high opinion of him – because he is a good man who lives his convictions.

    Jan, you are wandering into joke territory around here pretty quickly.

  47. nitpicker says:

    James,

    One point that’s often highlighted by West’s supporters in the recalling of West’s tale is his claim that everything he did, he did for his troops. Of course, in his own statement on the incident, West said that it all began because there was an assassination plot against him. While it was still something that should have been investigated, saying he was looking out for his troops while he was protecting his own ass is despicable.

    Also, West committed one of what I consider to be one of the most grievous sins a military leader can commit. He gave his soldiers an illegal order. He, in the words of a sergeant first class who witnessed West’s crime, “instructed the soldiers that came in to hit him.” Putting his illegal action toward the detainee aside, West put soldiers–junior soldiers, no less (several specialists and a private first class)–in the position of either acting illegally or refusing that illegal order. There is probably no tougher thing for a young enlisted soldier to do than look a commanding officer in the eye and tell that officer he will not perform an ordered illegal act, in part, because there’s always the possibility the officer could convince others the young soldier refused a lawful order–a severe crime in a war zone. So, rather than West being an example of sober military leadership, he ordered his own men to violate the UCMJ and, in the end, they shared in his punishment, while he was allowed to retire with full pay.

    Never again let someone tell you Allen West was anything less than a scumbag of an Army officer.

  48. Eric Florack says:

    He’s right, more often than Obama is.
    And he dared be critical of a white woman? He must not know his place, huh?

  49. largebill says:

    @Muffler: Muffler, So you call the police when you get an email that calls you and mildly insults you. We’re going to have to hire more police if they are going to start responding to instances of incivility. I’d finish this note by calling you a moron but I don’t want you calling the police.

  50. Nick says:

    West:

    “I grew up in the inner city, strong values, came from a strong military family and background,” West continues. “What we do is we totally invalidate the liberal social welfare policies and programs. And you know, I’m the threat because I’m the guy that got off their 21st-century plantation, and they cannot afford to have a strong voice such as mine out there, reverberating and resonating across this country.”

    This idea is prevalent among the winger set, that Democrats promote social welfare programs to keep the votes of African Americans (and its related idea–that African Americans vote Democratic because of all that welfare money they get, and not because the GOP has used the Southern Strategy the last 50 years).

    The bulk of people receiving welfare are white. While a larger proportion of African Americans are poor, that’s explained in large part by our history of slavery, Jim Crow, and racial segregation. I’m sure there are people who would settle for welfare rather than work. But most people want to get a job and get some of the American goodies.

    But the GOP meme is necessary, because without it you can’t really explain why African Americans are so overwhelmingly supportive of the Democratic Party. It’s not because of GOP racist policies, it’s because those dirty Democrats have tricked those dumb and lazy African Americans into accepting welfare in place of working!

  51. largebill says:

    The only thing incorrect that Rep. West said was his use of the word “most.” DWS is certainly vile and despicable, but she is not the MOST vile or despicable. Pete Stark, Maxine Watters, Shiela Jackson Lee and a few others clearly are worse than DWS.

  52. Nick says:

    Continuing from above, West gets double hero points for taking his stand (as well as making himself a very valuable commodity to the Republican Party).

    First, unlike those other negroes, the dumb ones, he is smart enough to have figured out the game, that the Democrats are keeping blacks on the plantation with the pittance that is welfare.

    Second, not only is he smart enough to recognize the game, but he’s also courageous and industrious enough (unlike those lazy negroes) to go out and work his way to success.

    Finally, by being willing to shove members of his race under the bus as being stupid/and or lazy, he gets major support from the GOP, who oppose social welfare programs and use race baiting to secure votes to eliminate policies that largely benefit poor whites. He gets paid to give the GOP some cover against charges of racism.

    Brilliant!

  53. jan says:

    @anjin-san:

    Jan, you are wandering into joke territory around here pretty quickly.

    Here is what is wondering into joke territory! — how some people brush off Obama’s spending investments, while vilifying those who don’t.

  54. jan says:

    @James Joyner:

    James, this was an admirable post. While i don’t agree with necessarily all your choices (but, most of them), what is ‘admirable’ is that you seem to look through the vail of partisan politics and seem to chose people for their ideas and positions rather than simply if they have an R or D next to their name. That’s difficult to do, for most people. Congratulations!

  55. mantis says:

    And he dared be critical of a white woman? He must not know his place, huh?

    Hilarious. West is criticized for his policy positions, and he flips out, sends a ridiculous email, then goes on talk radio to whine that DWS is racist for criticizing his policy positions. Bithead (as in, how much data his brain can store) then stumbles in to claim that we’re all racists who are only criticizing West because we think blacks aren’t allowed to criticize white women. Now, I know there are a lot of people here that didn’t vote for Obama, but I don’t think bithead is directing his comment to them. He’s directing it at us liberals. So let me ask you, bithead, why were we all ok with Obama criticizing Hillary Clinton? Isn’t she a white woman? Go ahead, try to process that for a while and come back when you can store a byte.

  56. Johnny Utica says:

    ‘Smart’ ad placement technology is the best thing ever. Because without it, I wouldn’t have been treated to this when I opened this page:

  57. Johnny Utica says:

    Sorry, link didn’t work. The banner ad at the top is a “Help Allen West Keep Fighting” ad. When I reloaded to post this I got one on the side too.

  58. anjin-san says:

    some people brush off Obama’s spending investments, while vilifying those who don’t

    Tell you what Jan – show me some of the posts you wrote taking Cheney to task when he said “deficits don’t matter”. Then you will have some credibility on this issue.