Showing posts with label Politically Correct idjits. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Politically Correct idjits. Show all posts
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Brits deal with Free Speech issue like here in USA - Offensive Muslim Extremists act out in a similar manner to Westboro Baptist idiots....
The Tyranny of the Minority is in full effect both here & abroad. We have the thick skulled idiots of the Westboro Baptist Church spewing their filth at soldier's funerals, and the Brits have Muslim extremists degrading a Remembrance Day Memorial by burning poppies to offend those in attendance.
The significant difference is the Westboro Baptists aren't looking to institute a religious law into our society. The fools over in England are trying to institute Sharia law as they want to control all of England....The idiot involved in the case in England says so directly, " We want Sharia law in this country"
This is the type of threat that needs to be addressed head on....I find this type of protest offensive but it is the price we pay for Freedom of Speech. I am not thrilled with this perversion of the law but understand why it has to be allowed.
On the other hand, the " Tyranny of the Minority" is something that can be and should be stamped out. This stupid fool who mocks the War Dead and preaches overthrow of the British Government should be expelled back to his native country. His actions are defiant and his mocking of the authority should be handled with a charge of contempt of the courts...His attitude will only incite others to act out and while protest is allowed by free speech, inciting violence and civil unrest is not.
The English people need to rise up against these fools and show that they are behind their soldiers and against the vile filth that this idiot puts forward. He'll get his just punishment one day along with the stupid fools from the Westboro Baptist Church. These people are the dregs of society...bottom feeding scumbags and will always be regarded as such.
£50 insult to Britain's war dead: Veteran's fury as poppy burner enjoying a life on benefits gets paltry fine and mocks soldiers
By Emily Andrews - UK Mail
Last updated at 7:56 AM on 8th March 2011
Despite saying he would pay more for a parking fine, Choudhury said he would not pay up
As a British citizen, Emdadur Choudhury enjoys benefits including a free council flat and almost £800 a month state handouts.
Yesterday he laughed at justice as he was handed a paltry £50 fine for setting light to poppies on Remembrance Day and yelling ‘British soldiers burn in hell’.
After hearing his penalty, which outraged war veterans, the 26-year-old father of two declared: ‘I don’t have any respect for British soldiers, and if they lose a limb or two in Afghanistan then they deserve it. You expect me to feel sorry for them? Of course I don’t.’
Emdadur Choudhury, who didn't bother to attend the hearing yesterday, claimed the charge levelled against him was 'ridiculous'
Choudhury, from Bethnal Green, East London, was found guilty of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour by District Judge Howard Riddle, following a one-day trial last month.
The maximum fine possible was £1,000, plus legal costs, and Judge Riddle said he had no doubt Choudhury had set out to shock and offend. Yet he fined him only £50, plus a £15 victim surcharge.
Although Choudhury sneered that he would have been fined more than £50 for a parking offence, he is refusing to pay. However the bill will be picked up by his ‘good friend’ Anjem Choudary, the notorious firebrand preacher.
Choudhury could also have been charged under Section 31 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, which is racially or religiously aggravated public order offence. This offence also carries a maximum sentence of six months, but the level of fine can reach £2,500.
The defendant could also have faced charges of an incitement or racial hatred under the Public Order Act.
This offence relates to deliberately provoking hatred of a racial group. Among the offences listed as arrestable are making inflammatory public speeches and inciting inflammatory rumours about an individual or an ethnic group.
Choudhury, whose parents are Bangladeshi immigrants who came to Britain for a better life, was a leading member of a demonstration by the so-called Muslims Against Crusaders on November 11
.
During the two-minute silence he was caught on camera unfurling several large plastic poppies and dousing them in petrol before setting them alight.
The protesters, who had gathered near the Royal Albert Hall close to the finish of a charity walk to commemorate service personnel, also repeatedly yelled ‘Burn British soldiers, burn in hell’.
Choudhury and his co-accused Mohammed Haque, 30, who was cleared of the same charge for lack of evidence, could not even be bothered to attend Belmarsh Magistrates’ Court for the verdict.
The court heard that Choudhury works part time as a satellite engineer and earns £480 a month. He also receives a monthly total of £792 in state benefits, comprising £240 working tax credit; £432 child tax credit and £120 a month child benefit.
Judge Riddle said: ‘Shocking and offending people is sometimes a necessary part of effective protest. Here, an obvious consequence of this process was to show disrespect for dead soldiers.
‘The two-minute chanting, when others were observing a silence, followed by a burning of the symbol of remembrance, was a calculated and deliberate insult to the dead and those who mourn or remember them. If the memory of dead soldiers is publicly insulted at a time and place where there is likely to be gathered people who have expressly attended to honour those soldiers, then the threat to public order is obvious.
‘Here it is hard to imagine that a public order disturbance was not intended.’
Choudary was caught on camera unfurling several large plastic poppies on the ground before burning them at the end of the two-minute silence to honour the war dead
Later, in a park near his home, a defiant Choudhury said: ‘The poppy disgusts me – it’s not to do with World War One or World War Two veterans, it’s all about raising money for soldiers injured in the wars now.
‘I’m not being disrespectful for burning it, I’m being honourable. It’s all about shock and awe, to get these soldiers out of Muslim lands.’
Asked if he would do it again, he replied laughing: ‘You’ll have to find out next time, won’t you? The only reason I even got a fine is cos it’s politically motivated. I would have got a bigger fine for a parking ticket than this.
District Judge Howard Riddle made the decision to impose the fine on Choudhury, something that left Shaun Rusling and fellow veterans 'disgusted'
‘It’s my freedom of speech and I’m exercising that. I’m being persecuted for it. This fine, I will wear it as a badge on my shoulder. I did it for Allah. I did it to raise awareness that these so-called soldiers are the criminals. They are the ones who should be tried for war crimes.’
Sinisterly he promised that he had ‘2,000 youths who will follow me and do whatever I tell them – you don’t want another Afghanistan here do you? We want Sharia law in this country, and Inshallah [God willing] we will get it’.
Shaun Rusling, of the National Gulf War Veterans and Families Association, said: ‘I think the British people would be disgusted with the sentence handed out.
Remembrance Day is very special for those in the Armed Forces, when we remember those who have lost their lives for freedom and fighting for their country.
Mohammad Haque (left) and Emdadur Choudhury (right) pictured yesterday. Choudhury was convicted of a public order offence after he burned a poppy on Armistice Day and fined £50. Fellow defendant Haque was found not guilty of the same offence
‘It is a personal insult to all of them. I am personally insulted, any veteran would be personally insulted by them burning a poppy. I don’t think it is an acceptable sentence at all.’
A spokesman for the Royal British Legion said: ‘The poppy is the symbol of sacrifice and valour. It offers everyone an opportunity to reflect on the human cost of conflicts past and present.
‘The two-minute silence is a time for such reflection, and not for political protests or public disorder. We are confident that this is understood and supported by most people.
SO WHY WAS HE JUST CHARGED WITH A PUBLIC ORDER OFFENCE?
Emdadur Choudhury was charged with an offence under Section 5 of Public Order Act 1986. Under the act, a person is guilty of an offence if they use either, threatening abusive or insulting words, disorderly behaviour, or display any writing, sign or visible representation that he threatening or insulting.
The maximum sentence for this offence is six months, while the highest fine imposable by a court is £1,000. The judge could also have imposed a community sentence such as unpaid work. However because the defendant is understood to have no prior criminal convictions, the judge would not have considered a custodial sentence.
The significant difference is the Westboro Baptists aren't looking to institute a religious law into our society. The fools over in England are trying to institute Sharia law as they want to control all of England....The idiot involved in the case in England says so directly, " We want Sharia law in this country"
This is the type of threat that needs to be addressed head on....I find this type of protest offensive but it is the price we pay for Freedom of Speech. I am not thrilled with this perversion of the law but understand why it has to be allowed.
On the other hand, the " Tyranny of the Minority" is something that can be and should be stamped out. This stupid fool who mocks the War Dead and preaches overthrow of the British Government should be expelled back to his native country. His actions are defiant and his mocking of the authority should be handled with a charge of contempt of the courts...His attitude will only incite others to act out and while protest is allowed by free speech, inciting violence and civil unrest is not.
The English people need to rise up against these fools and show that they are behind their soldiers and against the vile filth that this idiot puts forward. He'll get his just punishment one day along with the stupid fools from the Westboro Baptist Church. These people are the dregs of society...bottom feeding scumbags and will always be regarded as such.
£50 insult to Britain's war dead: Veteran's fury as poppy burner enjoying a life on benefits gets paltry fine and mocks soldiers
By Emily Andrews - UK Mail
Last updated at 7:56 AM on 8th March 2011
Despite saying he would pay more for a parking fine, Choudhury said he would not pay up
As a British citizen, Emdadur Choudhury enjoys benefits including a free council flat and almost £800 a month state handouts.
Yesterday he laughed at justice as he was handed a paltry £50 fine for setting light to poppies on Remembrance Day and yelling ‘British soldiers burn in hell’.
After hearing his penalty, which outraged war veterans, the 26-year-old father of two declared: ‘I don’t have any respect for British soldiers, and if they lose a limb or two in Afghanistan then they deserve it. You expect me to feel sorry for them? Of course I don’t.’
Emdadur Choudhury, who didn't bother to attend the hearing yesterday, claimed the charge levelled against him was 'ridiculous'
Choudhury, from Bethnal Green, East London, was found guilty of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour by District Judge Howard Riddle, following a one-day trial last month.
The maximum fine possible was £1,000, plus legal costs, and Judge Riddle said he had no doubt Choudhury had set out to shock and offend. Yet he fined him only £50, plus a £15 victim surcharge.
Although Choudhury sneered that he would have been fined more than £50 for a parking offence, he is refusing to pay. However the bill will be picked up by his ‘good friend’ Anjem Choudary, the notorious firebrand preacher.
Choudhury could also have been charged under Section 31 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, which is racially or religiously aggravated public order offence. This offence also carries a maximum sentence of six months, but the level of fine can reach £2,500.
The defendant could also have faced charges of an incitement or racial hatred under the Public Order Act.
This offence relates to deliberately provoking hatred of a racial group. Among the offences listed as arrestable are making inflammatory public speeches and inciting inflammatory rumours about an individual or an ethnic group.
Choudhury, whose parents are Bangladeshi immigrants who came to Britain for a better life, was a leading member of a demonstration by the so-called Muslims Against Crusaders on November 11
.
During the two-minute silence he was caught on camera unfurling several large plastic poppies and dousing them in petrol before setting them alight.
The protesters, who had gathered near the Royal Albert Hall close to the finish of a charity walk to commemorate service personnel, also repeatedly yelled ‘Burn British soldiers, burn in hell’.
Choudhury and his co-accused Mohammed Haque, 30, who was cleared of the same charge for lack of evidence, could not even be bothered to attend Belmarsh Magistrates’ Court for the verdict.
The court heard that Choudhury works part time as a satellite engineer and earns £480 a month. He also receives a monthly total of £792 in state benefits, comprising £240 working tax credit; £432 child tax credit and £120 a month child benefit.
Judge Riddle said: ‘Shocking and offending people is sometimes a necessary part of effective protest. Here, an obvious consequence of this process was to show disrespect for dead soldiers.
‘The two-minute chanting, when others were observing a silence, followed by a burning of the symbol of remembrance, was a calculated and deliberate insult to the dead and those who mourn or remember them. If the memory of dead soldiers is publicly insulted at a time and place where there is likely to be gathered people who have expressly attended to honour those soldiers, then the threat to public order is obvious.
‘Here it is hard to imagine that a public order disturbance was not intended.’
Choudary was caught on camera unfurling several large plastic poppies on the ground before burning them at the end of the two-minute silence to honour the war dead
Later, in a park near his home, a defiant Choudhury said: ‘The poppy disgusts me – it’s not to do with World War One or World War Two veterans, it’s all about raising money for soldiers injured in the wars now.
‘I’m not being disrespectful for burning it, I’m being honourable. It’s all about shock and awe, to get these soldiers out of Muslim lands.’
Asked if he would do it again, he replied laughing: ‘You’ll have to find out next time, won’t you? The only reason I even got a fine is cos it’s politically motivated. I would have got a bigger fine for a parking ticket than this.
District Judge Howard Riddle made the decision to impose the fine on Choudhury, something that left Shaun Rusling and fellow veterans 'disgusted'
‘It’s my freedom of speech and I’m exercising that. I’m being persecuted for it. This fine, I will wear it as a badge on my shoulder. I did it for Allah. I did it to raise awareness that these so-called soldiers are the criminals. They are the ones who should be tried for war crimes.’
Sinisterly he promised that he had ‘2,000 youths who will follow me and do whatever I tell them – you don’t want another Afghanistan here do you? We want Sharia law in this country, and Inshallah [God willing] we will get it’.
Shaun Rusling, of the National Gulf War Veterans and Families Association, said: ‘I think the British people would be disgusted with the sentence handed out.
Remembrance Day is very special for those in the Armed Forces, when we remember those who have lost their lives for freedom and fighting for their country.
Mohammad Haque (left) and Emdadur Choudhury (right) pictured yesterday. Choudhury was convicted of a public order offence after he burned a poppy on Armistice Day and fined £50. Fellow defendant Haque was found not guilty of the same offence
‘It is a personal insult to all of them. I am personally insulted, any veteran would be personally insulted by them burning a poppy. I don’t think it is an acceptable sentence at all.’
A spokesman for the Royal British Legion said: ‘The poppy is the symbol of sacrifice and valour. It offers everyone an opportunity to reflect on the human cost of conflicts past and present.
‘The two-minute silence is a time for such reflection, and not for political protests or public disorder. We are confident that this is understood and supported by most people.
SO WHY WAS HE JUST CHARGED WITH A PUBLIC ORDER OFFENCE?
Emdadur Choudhury was charged with an offence under Section 5 of Public Order Act 1986. Under the act, a person is guilty of an offence if they use either, threatening abusive or insulting words, disorderly behaviour, or display any writing, sign or visible representation that he threatening or insulting.
The maximum sentence for this offence is six months, while the highest fine imposable by a court is £1,000. The judge could also have imposed a community sentence such as unpaid work. However because the defendant is understood to have no prior criminal convictions, the judge would not have considered a custodial sentence.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Col. Alan West - "One of the critical things that if we do not get beyond will end up destroying this country is political correctness."
There is a reason why we need more Military Leaders in our Congress.....they are used to being part of large organizations but also work in small teams.
They also have dedicated their lives to something larger than themselves....
Col. Alan West knows this all too well - he dedicated himself to selfless service and the creed of all Army Officers:
Soldier's Creed
I am an American Soldier. I am a member of the United States Army-- a protector of the greatest nation on earth. Because I am proud of the uniform I wear, I will always act in ways creditable to the military service and the nation it is sworn to guard.
They also have dedicated their lives to something larger than themselves....
Col. Alan West knows this all too well - he dedicated himself to selfless service and the creed of all Army Officers:
Soldier's Creed
I am an American Soldier. I am a member of the United States Army-- a protector of the greatest nation on earth. Because I am proud of the uniform I wear, I will always act in ways creditable to the military service and the nation it is sworn to guard.
I am proud of my own organization. I will do all I can to make it the finest unit in the Army. I will be loyal to those under whom I serve. I will do my full part to carry out orders and instructions given to me or my unit.
As a soldier, I realize that I am a member of a time-honored profession--that I am doing my share to keep alive the principles of freedom for which my country stands. No matter what the situation I am in, I will never do anything, for pleasure, profit, or personal safety, which will disgrace my uniform, my unit, or my country. I will use every means I have, even beyond the line of duty, to restrain my Army comrades from actions disgraceful to themselves and to the uniform.
I am proud of my country and its flag. I will try to make the people of this nation proud of the service I represent, for I am an American Soldier.
I hope he continues to "take the hill" as we need more like him. NOW, more than ever when we have feckless idiots like Barry-from-Chicago taking our country into the ground.
You don't need to agree with himon the issues, but he is obviously head & shoulders above the normal political fools we see on a daily basis in Washington.
Rookie U.S. Rep. Allen West taking bulldog's approach
By Alex Leary, St. Petersburg Times Staff Writer
Posted: Feb 13, 2011 01:53 PM
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Allen West recoils at the word.
"I am not a freshman," the Florida lawmaker says. "I turned 50 yesterday. I spent 22 years in the United States military. I led troops in combat."
Only a month on the job, West is bucking the seen-not-heard advice given to new lawmakers. He is taking a bulldog approach, barreling to the top of political insiders' lists of the most vulnerable members of Congress. A complex figure, West is:
• A Republican who joined both the liberal Congressional Black Caucus and the rigidly conservative tea party caucus.
• A sharp-talker who rebuked the first elected Muslim lawmaker in Congress and accused his own party leaders of not working hard enough, not cutting the budget deep enough.
• A retired Army colonel with credentials to land an appearance on Meet the Press and regular spots on other national TV shows.
• A provocative speaker who on Saturday delivered the closing speech at a major gathering of conservative activists in Washington, a slot that had been Sarah Palin's before she canceled.
"We welcome the beliefs of others in America, but our co-existence must be based on a simple premise: When tolerance becomes a one-way street, it leads to cultural suicide. An American cultural value shall never be subjugated to any other as long as I have air in my lungs," West said, stirring thousands to their feet at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
It was 25 minutes of red meat, accusing China of using capitalism "as a weapon against us," pillorying "liberal progressivism," and saying the country needs to reclaim its Judeo-Christian values.
"I have goose bumps," Jane Lawler-Savitske, a 63-year-old tea party follower from Springfield, Va., said after the speech.
One-on-one, West seems detached from the wild campaign persona, the man who spewed invective toward President Barack Obama and "liberals," draped himself in tea party yellow, covered his flat top in a red-white-and-blue bandana, the YouTube sensation.
In white shirtsleeves and with bookish round glasses, West looks like a middle manager – except for the camouflage bag he carries instead of a briefcase. He barely gets animated during a 30-minute interview in his hyper-organized, seventh-floor office, which by coincidence is next to one held by the man who headed the 2010 Democratic campaign effort, Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
"There's some kind of crazy, mythical perspective of who I am out there," West said, insisting he is not a "radical right wing nut" but "rational, kind of intelligent." To prove a point, he quotes Nietzsche.
• • •
West arrived in Washington after defeating two-term Democrat Ron Klein, who argued that his opponent's views were out of step with the 22nd congressional district, a span of mostly-white and fairly affluent voters that runs from north Palm Beach County to Fort Lauderdale in Broward County.
In normal times, West likely would not be able to get elected. The district is nearly divided politically, favoring a moderate. (He failed two years earlier.) But in 2010, the economy was hurting and the president was fairly unpopular. Conservative politics were on the rise and West had a fitting less-government, less-Obama message that he delivered in aggressive tones.
"If we sit complacent and if we don't pay attention to what's going on right now, we will find ourselves once again becoming slaves to a tyrannical government," he said at a tea party rally. "You cannot stand down. You cannot stop being vigilant. And just as this T-shirt says ... we must tell this government, 'Don't tread on me.' "
An incident from when he served in Iraq and fired a gun near a detainee's head to force him to give up information about a possible attack on U.S. troops spread on the Internet. West raised millions from admirers and drew Palin's endorsement.
Before he even took office, West was ensnared in controversy. He picked as his chief of staff an ultra-conservative radio talk show host with no experience. Critics circulated comments Joyce Kaufman made at a tea party rally that implied violence was justified against the government. "If ballots don't work," she said, "bullets will."
Kaufman was replaced with a Capitol Hill veteran, but West kept pushing. When the new Republican leaders of the House announced a work schedule that had members back in their districts more often, he complained to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, "an unusual power play move by a freshman," as the Capitol newspaper The Hill put it.
"The American people are depending upon us to be up here and doing the business of righting the ship," he said.
He was also among freshman Republicans who criticized their leaders' budget-cutting effort, which fell far short of the $100 billion promised on the campaign trail. "You start to look like a back-tracker," West said.
The pressure has caused budget officials to take another look, and has given weight to the 87 new Republican members. West seems determined to emerge as a voice for the group.
In January, West drew fire for saying that Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., the first Muslim member of Congress, "really does represent the antithesis of the principles upon which this country was established." A group of religious leaders condemned West, who insisted he was referring to Ellison's support for the Council on American Islamic Relations.
"One of the critical things that if we do not get beyond will end up destroying this country," West said, "is political correctness."
• • •
West's actions recall another tough-talking Florida politician who generated national media attention — former U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson of Orlando. Grayson is West's complete opposite politically but the men are remarkably similar in style.
But attention cuts both ways and Grayson is a cautionary tale. He became a villain for Republicans and was defeated in November after only one term.
Democrats have already run radio ads against West for his support of deep budget cuts.
West says he'll use the attention to rally supporters. His goal is to exceed the $6.5 million he raised for 2010, to make himself "so formidable that people will scratch their heads as far as whether they really want to jump into this race."
Klein has not ruled out a re-match: "His rhetoric has been so over the top. It's up to him to make his case to the public that he represents their interests."
Deerfield Beach Mayor Peggy Noland, a Democrat, said West has already demonstrated that by reaching out to her and pledging to work on a sewer line issue. "I think he's going to be a worker," Noland said.
At the conservative conference Saturday, West sneered at those who say he could be headed for defeat in 2012.
"Standing here before each and every one of you," he said, "I don't feel so vulnerable."
Alex Leary can be reached at leary@sptimes.com. Follow him on Twitter @learyspt
Rookie U.S. Rep. Allen West taking bulldog's approach
By Alex Leary, St. Petersburg Times Staff Writer
Posted: Feb 13, 2011 01:53 PM
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Allen West recoils at the word.
"I am not a freshman," the Florida lawmaker says. "I turned 50 yesterday. I spent 22 years in the United States military. I led troops in combat."
Only a month on the job, West is bucking the seen-not-heard advice given to new lawmakers. He is taking a bulldog approach, barreling to the top of political insiders' lists of the most vulnerable members of Congress. A complex figure, West is:
• A Republican who joined both the liberal Congressional Black Caucus and the rigidly conservative tea party caucus.
• A sharp-talker who rebuked the first elected Muslim lawmaker in Congress and accused his own party leaders of not working hard enough, not cutting the budget deep enough.
• A retired Army colonel with credentials to land an appearance on Meet the Press and regular spots on other national TV shows.
• A provocative speaker who on Saturday delivered the closing speech at a major gathering of conservative activists in Washington, a slot that had been Sarah Palin's before she canceled.
"We welcome the beliefs of others in America, but our co-existence must be based on a simple premise: When tolerance becomes a one-way street, it leads to cultural suicide. An American cultural value shall never be subjugated to any other as long as I have air in my lungs," West said, stirring thousands to their feet at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
It was 25 minutes of red meat, accusing China of using capitalism "as a weapon against us," pillorying "liberal progressivism," and saying the country needs to reclaim its Judeo-Christian values.
"I have goose bumps," Jane Lawler-Savitske, a 63-year-old tea party follower from Springfield, Va., said after the speech.
One-on-one, West seems detached from the wild campaign persona, the man who spewed invective toward President Barack Obama and "liberals," draped himself in tea party yellow, covered his flat top in a red-white-and-blue bandana, the YouTube sensation.
In white shirtsleeves and with bookish round glasses, West looks like a middle manager – except for the camouflage bag he carries instead of a briefcase. He barely gets animated during a 30-minute interview in his hyper-organized, seventh-floor office, which by coincidence is next to one held by the man who headed the 2010 Democratic campaign effort, Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
"There's some kind of crazy, mythical perspective of who I am out there," West said, insisting he is not a "radical right wing nut" but "rational, kind of intelligent." To prove a point, he quotes Nietzsche.
• • •
West arrived in Washington after defeating two-term Democrat Ron Klein, who argued that his opponent's views were out of step with the 22nd congressional district, a span of mostly-white and fairly affluent voters that runs from north Palm Beach County to Fort Lauderdale in Broward County.
In normal times, West likely would not be able to get elected. The district is nearly divided politically, favoring a moderate. (He failed two years earlier.) But in 2010, the economy was hurting and the president was fairly unpopular. Conservative politics were on the rise and West had a fitting less-government, less-Obama message that he delivered in aggressive tones.
"If we sit complacent and if we don't pay attention to what's going on right now, we will find ourselves once again becoming slaves to a tyrannical government," he said at a tea party rally. "You cannot stand down. You cannot stop being vigilant. And just as this T-shirt says ... we must tell this government, 'Don't tread on me.' "
An incident from when he served in Iraq and fired a gun near a detainee's head to force him to give up information about a possible attack on U.S. troops spread on the Internet. West raised millions from admirers and drew Palin's endorsement.
Before he even took office, West was ensnared in controversy. He picked as his chief of staff an ultra-conservative radio talk show host with no experience. Critics circulated comments Joyce Kaufman made at a tea party rally that implied violence was justified against the government. "If ballots don't work," she said, "bullets will."
Kaufman was replaced with a Capitol Hill veteran, but West kept pushing. When the new Republican leaders of the House announced a work schedule that had members back in their districts more often, he complained to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, "an unusual power play move by a freshman," as the Capitol newspaper The Hill put it.
"The American people are depending upon us to be up here and doing the business of righting the ship," he said.
He was also among freshman Republicans who criticized their leaders' budget-cutting effort, which fell far short of the $100 billion promised on the campaign trail. "You start to look like a back-tracker," West said.
The pressure has caused budget officials to take another look, and has given weight to the 87 new Republican members. West seems determined to emerge as a voice for the group.
In January, West drew fire for saying that Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., the first Muslim member of Congress, "really does represent the antithesis of the principles upon which this country was established." A group of religious leaders condemned West, who insisted he was referring to Ellison's support for the Council on American Islamic Relations.
"One of the critical things that if we do not get beyond will end up destroying this country," West said, "is political correctness."
• • •
West's actions recall another tough-talking Florida politician who generated national media attention — former U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson of Orlando. Grayson is West's complete opposite politically but the men are remarkably similar in style.
But attention cuts both ways and Grayson is a cautionary tale. He became a villain for Republicans and was defeated in November after only one term.
Democrats have already run radio ads against West for his support of deep budget cuts.
West says he'll use the attention to rally supporters. His goal is to exceed the $6.5 million he raised for 2010, to make himself "so formidable that people will scratch their heads as far as whether they really want to jump into this race."
Klein has not ruled out a re-match: "His rhetoric has been so over the top. It's up to him to make his case to the public that he represents their interests."
Deerfield Beach Mayor Peggy Noland, a Democrat, said West has already demonstrated that by reaching out to her and pledging to work on a sewer line issue. "I think he's going to be a worker," Noland said.
At the conservative conference Saturday, West sneered at those who say he could be headed for defeat in 2012.
"Standing here before each and every one of you," he said, "I don't feel so vulnerable."
Alex Leary can be reached at leary@sptimes.com. Follow him on Twitter @learyspt
Friday, January 7, 2011
Heaven Help Us...Mark Twain gets the word about the Politically Correct Idjits who have changed his writings....
" (The) editor is a critic. He has pulled out his carving-knife and his tomahawk and is starting after a book which he is going to have for breakfast." - Samuel Clemons
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