Payroll Tax Cut

GOP Goes To War With Itself Over Payroll Cut

Brian Beutler | December 19, 2011, 5:30PM

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) conducts a news conference along with fellow GOP members on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on November 30, 2011.

A civil war between House Republicans and their Senate counterparts had gone public over the possibility that the GOP will be held to blame if the current payroll tax cut expires on January 1. The Senators feel abandoned after having voted overwhelmingly on Saturday to pass a two month extension of the holiday -- only to have conservatives in the House GOP conference reject it publicly, and insult the legislation itself.

GOP Leaders on both sides of the Capitol are trying to contain the fallout, but with vulnerable Senate Republicans exposed, and the payroll tax cut set to lapse in less than two weeks, that's a tall order.

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Payroll Tax Cut

Standoff: A Guide To The Ongoing Fight Over The Payroll Tax Cut

Brian Beutler | December 19, 2011, 1:25PM

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and President Barack Obama

At a Capitol press conference Monday morning, House Speaker John Boehner told reporters he expects his members will kill the bipartisan, Senate-passed, two-month payroll tax cut bill. Instead he said Republicans will insist that Senate Democrats return to Washington and hash out the differences between that package, and the partisan one-year bill the House GOP passed a week ago.

That's setting up a new round in the ongoing fight over how to prevent that tax cut -- and other expiring policies like emergency unemployment benefits, and reimbursement rates for Medicare physicians -- from expiring.

Where we go from here depends on Boehner making good on his threat. To that end House and Senate Democrats, along with key Senate Republicans -- who voted for the compromise measure, and whom Boehner is hanging out to dry -- are pressing the House GOP to follow through on the deal.

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Allen West

Allen West: 'If Joseph Goebbels Was Around, He'd Be Very Proud Of The Democrat Party'

Eric Kleefeld | December 15, 2011, 6:22PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL) delivers the keynote address at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, D.C. on February 12, 2011.

Rep. Allen West (R-FL) has thrown another rhetorical bombshell, the Washington Post reports: Comparing Democrats' political messaging to that of Joseph Goebbels, the Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany!

West was responding to poll data, showing that Americans are blaming Republicans for the lack of compromise in Congress, and viewing the GOP as "more extreme" than the Dems.

"If Joseph Goebbels was around, he'd be very proud of the Democrat Party, because they have an incredible propaganda machine," West told reporters during House votes Thursday afternoon. "Let's be honest, you know, some of the people in the media are complicit with this and enabling them to get that type of message out."

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Allen West

Allen West Not Quitting CBC: 'Warriors Run To The Sound Of Battle'

Eric Kleefeld | September 8, 2011, 6:08PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Rep. Allen West (R-FL), the hard-line conservative Tea Partier who is currently the only Republican member of the Congressional Black Caucus, has announced that he is not quitting the organization, after he had threatened to do so last week.

"Cowards run from challenges, while warriors run to the sound of battle," West proudly declared. "I will not be resigning from the Congressional Black Caucus. Constitutional Conservatism is now and will in the future be a part of the Congressional Black Caucus."

West made his threat over comments made by Rep. André Carson (D-IN), who said at a CBC event in Miami, "Some of them in Congress right now with this Tea Party movement would love to see you and me -- hanging on a tree."

West posted a message Thursday on Facebook, announcing that he had met with Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) and Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO). "I expressed my condemnation of recent comments from fellow CBC members, especially Rep. Andre Carson," West declared.

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Allen West

Allen West Threatens To Quit Congressional Black Caucus Over Attacks On GOP, While Attacking Dems

Eric Kleefeld | August 31, 2011, 3:49PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Rep. Allen West (R-FL), the hard-line conservative Tea Partier who is currently the only Republican member of the Congressional Black Caucus, is now saying that he might quit the group -- if they don't condemn remarks made by fellow member Rep. André Carson (D-IN) attacking Republicans.

"Some of these folks in Congress right now would love to see us as second-class citizens," Carson told a CBC event in Miami. "Some of them in Congress right now with this Tea Party movement would love to see you and me -- hanging on a tree."

This has West -- who has made no small amount of racially inflammatory remarks about Democrats and African-American voters -- calling for the CBC to denounce Carson, who holds a leadership position as CBC whip.

"It is unconscionable when a fellow CBC Member, Congressman Andre Carson, comes to South Florida and claims that some in the Tea Party would love to see black Americans 'hanging on a tree,'" West wrote Wednesday in a letter to CBC chair Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), which he also released to the media. "It is appalling to hear another CBC colleague, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, say 'The Tea Party can go straight to hell.'

"As Chairman of the CBC, I believe it is incumbent on you to both condemn these types of hate-filled comments, and to disassociate the Congressional Black Caucus from these types of remarks. Otherwise, I will have to seriously reconsider my membership within the organization."

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Allen West

Waters: Allen West's Comments 'So Odd' -- And I'm Helping His Brother (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | August 18, 2011, 6:25PM

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) has been firing back at Rep. Allen West (R-FL), who named her as an example of how the Democratic Party has created what he called a "21-century plantation" over black voters, with appointed African-American leaders to act as "overseers" -- the men who committed the day-to-day atrocities of ruling over slaves in the antebellum South.

"I think it's so odd," said Waters, in one such appearance on Hardball, shaking her head. "No, I think that's odd, and it doesn't make good sense. And I don't think that it even deserves a response.

Waters then dished out a response: "Did I tell you his brother was here today?"

She explained to Matthews that West, who is originally from Atlanta, has a brother who went to the Congressional Black Caucus's jobs fair and town hall event in that city.

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Allen West

Allen West: 'I'm Here As The Modern-Day Harriet Tubman' To Lead Blacks Out Of The Dem 'Plantation' (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | August 18, 2011, 9:39AM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

In an appearance Wednesday night on Fox News, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) said that the Democratic Party has kept African-Americans on a "21st-century plantation," with liberal black politicians being like the "overseers" who would rule over the slaves -- and likened himself to Harriet Tubman, the most famous member of the Underground Railroad movement, who helped over 70 slaves escape to freedom and inspired many others by her example.

West discussed President Obama's current bus tour, with guest host Laura Ingraham.

"Well I think, Laura, when you look at what is happening, the laughable hypocrisy is that the big black bus is not going into the black community," said West. "When you had unemployment in the black community, 16.3 percent in July, and it dropped down to 15.9 percent for the month of August, that's not in the right direction. [Note: 15.9% unemployment for a demographic group certainly is bad -- but isn't even a slight drop a move in the right direction?]

"So, you have this 21st-century plantation that has been out there, where the Democrat Party has forever taken the black vote for granted. And you have established certain black leaders, who are nothing more than the overseers of that plantation. And now the people on that plantation are upset, because they have been disregarded, disrespected, and their concerns are not cared about.

"So I'm here as the modern-day Harriet Tubman, to kind of lead people on the Underground Railroad, away from that plantation into a sense of sensibility."

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Allen West

House Republicans Unprepared For Senate Rejection Of Boehner Debt Limit Plan

Brian Beutler | July 28, 2011, 11:33AM

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) told his Republican caucus Thursday morning that he doesn't yet have enough committed support to pass his debt limit bill -- a high stakes vote that will take place just hours from the time of this writing.

Most of his members believe he'll get there quickly -- even among the opponents of his bill, it's hard to find anybody who believes with any confidence that Boehner's plan will go down.

Earlier this week, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) -- chair of the conservative Republican Study Committee -- told reporters Boehner lacked the votes to pass his legislation. Today he's not so sure. "[T]hey weren't there at the time, we'll see what happens," he told me.

But if it passes, Republicans will have to grapple with a key question -- one they haven't really considered, and which Boehner hasn't prepared them to answer: What happens when the Senate sends them back a different plan?

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Debt

GOP Establishment Starts Leaning Hard On Internal Rebels

Thomas Lane | July 27, 2011, 1:50PM

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH)

The fast-developing Republican civil war appears to have wracked up its latest injured, the most prominent of which is Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (OH). Following his attacks on Speaker Boehner's debt limit proposals, reports indicate he himself came under heavy assault. Meanwhile, the RSC's executive director, Paul Teller, was facing calls for his sacking over his emails opposing Boehner.

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Debt Ceiling

Hope For Boehner? Some House Conservatives Closing Ranks On Debt Limit Bill

Brian Beutler | July 27, 2011, 11:26AM

On Tuesday, conservative Republican Study Committee chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) predicted defeat for House Speaker John Boehner's (R-OH) plan to raise the debt limit.

"I am confident as of this morning that there are not 218 Republicans in support of the plan," he said.

He was counting on the opposition of dozens of House conservatives who have in the past pledged not to raise the debt limit on terms that compromising with Democrats would require.

Twenty-four hours later, after taking a beating from the GOP establishment and party leadership, and after watching Democrats grow more and more confident in their ability to split the Republican coalition, those conservatives are reconsidering their rebellion.

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John Boehner

CIVIL WAR: GOP Coalition Splinters Into Open Conflict Over Debt Ceiling

Benjy Sarlin & Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 27, 2011, 6:00AM

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and Speaker Boehner

The Republican leadership's efforts to avert a debt ceiling crisis with a two-tiered set of cuts is turning into the most divisive wedge issue the party has confronted since President Obama took over in 2009.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) may have thought his face-saving plan, which he hoped to bring to the floor Wednesday, offered a path to victory. However, since treading upon it he's been beset from all sides. It's not just that the President is threatening to veto the bill, should it ever make it past the Senate; it's that Boehner's fellow conservatives are sniping at him with (not so) friendly fire. Now the vote he'd hoped to bring triumphantly to the floor Wednesday looks delayed until at least Thursday, and even then the outcome is uncertain.

That's because the GOP is teetering on the brink of a debt-based civil war. More traditional Republicans and big business types are desperate to avoid a recovery-crushing default. But their Tea Party colleagues are leading a rebellion of epic - perhaps even galactic - proportions. Cue the John Williams music and find out who stands where in this stand-off between the Establishment's storm-troopers and the Rebel Alliance.

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Allen West

West: Wasserman Schultz And Dems Attack Me Because I'm A Black Conservative (AUDIO)

Eric Kleefeld | July 21, 2011, 9:56AM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Rep. Allen West (R-FL) is now making the rounds of the right-wing talk radio circuit, in the wake of his e-mail to DNC Chair and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), in which he declared that she has supposedly "proven repeatedly that you are not a Lady, therefore, shall not be afforded due respect from me!" His message for the GOP base: Liberals hate African-American conservatives like him for leaving their "21st-century plantation."

West appeared Wednesday evening on the Mark Levin radio show, and criticized Wasserman Schultz for, among other things, her remarks against his vote on the House Republicans' budget proposal (for which he sent the e-mail), and for having organized a protest outside his campaign headquarters during the 2010 campaign in which he was accused of sexism. No mention was made during the interview about the conflicting reports that he claimed to have apologized, though both his own office and Wasserman Schultz say he has not.

"The thing that really most aggravates me is that there is this double standard, in that the people on the hard left can continue to attack conservatives and especially minority conservatives, and female conservatives," said West. "But yet when all of a sudden you stand up and you say that you will not tolerate this anymore, then they claim to be a victim -- which I find just absolutely laughable."

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Allen West

West: I Apologized! Debbie Wasserman Schultz: Huh?

Igor Bobic | July 20, 2011, 6:07PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Following Rep. Allen West's (R-FL) Tuesday email to DNC chair and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz in which he attacked her as "vile, despicable, and unprofessional," and "not a Lady," West claimed he apologized. However, now both Wasserman Schultz and West's own spokesperson are saying he didn't.

Roll Call reported the apology earlier in the day, however, DNC aide Brad Woodhouse responded by calling the claim "a complete falsehood." Wasserman Schultz also told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that she in fact did not receive an apology.

Then, to complicate this escalating 'he said/ she said' fiasco, Angela Sachitano, a spokesperson for West also came out claiming the apology is "absolutely false." She said that actually, West is waiting for an apology from Wasserman Schultz. Indeed, the signs are that West is actually using the incident for fundraising purposes.

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Allen West

Wasserman Schultz: Not Surprising That Allen West Would 'Crack Under The Pressure' (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | July 20, 2011, 2:45PM

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)

DNC Chair and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) is responding to Rep. Allen West's (R-FL) Tuesday e-mail, in which he attacked her for her criticism of his vote on the House Republicans' budget proposals. West declared that she has supposedly "proven repeatedly that you are not a Lady, therefore, shall not be afforded due respect from me!" Appearing Wednesday afternoon on MSNBC with Andrea Mitchell, Wasserman Schultz said that with West's position on Medicare, he clearly isn't able to deal with her response. Also, she noted, West is in fact one of her constituents, rather than living in his own district.

Indeed, considering West's having built his political career on his time in the military -- which ended due to an incident involving the torture of an Iraqi policeman -- Wasserman Schultz's response could possibly be viewed as questioning West's own vigor and stability.

"Well, I have to tell you I was unfazed by his e-mail. It's not surprising that given the pressure that the Republicans are facing," said Wasserman Schultz. "I mean, they're defending ending Medicare as we know it. Congressman West represents thousands of senior citizens, which is what I was pointing out, and they would face significant increased costs due to the Republicans' Medicare plan and the Cut, Cap and Balance Bill.

"So it's not really surprising that he would crack under the pressure of having to defend that."

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Allen West

Allen West Calls DNC Chair 'Vile,' 'Despicable' And 'Not A Lady'

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 19, 2011, 6:43PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Maybe it's the stress of the debt ceiling debate or maybe it's his well-documented short fuse, but Rep. Allen West (R-FL) appeared to cross any number of lines in an email sent to DNC chair and fellow Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz Tuesday.

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Allen West

Rep. West, Discharged From Army For Abusing An Iraqi, Tells Obama Intimidation Is Wrong

Benjy Sarlin | July 12, 2011, 4:15PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

File this under "do as I say, not as I do."

Rep. Allen West (R-FL), a Tea Party-backed freshman, complained to reporters on Tuesday that the White House is trying to scare Americans in the debt ceiling fight.

"I am sick and tired of leadership that's based on fearmongering and intimidation," he said. "That's not how I led my unit in the military and I don't think that's how you should lead a country."

Funny story, about West's military unit, though. The reason he no longer commands them is that he was forced out of the Army for beating a man in Iraq. After West grew suspicious that an Iraqi policeman was helping terrorists, he ordered his men to abuse the soldier before personally firing his pistol past his head to, well, fearmonger and intimidate the suspect into giving up information. The man was never linked to any attacks and West didn't just own up to his actions, he campaigned on them.

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Debt ceiling

Rep. Allen West Praises Obama -- On Cutting Social Security And Medicare

Eric Kleefeld | July 7, 2011, 3:42PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Reports that President Obama could discuss with Republicans the idea of cuts to Social Security and Medicare is picking up praise from a source that doesn't usually have anything good to say about the President: Rep. Allen West (R-FL).

In fact, this is coming from a man whose military career ended after a torture-related incident, who has called Obama a "low-level socialist agitator", and who has said that Medicare will destroy America: "I gotta tell you something: if you support Medicare the way it is now, you can kiss the United States of America goodbye."

Of course, West also opposes increasing taxes as part of a budget deal, though he did signal some willingness to close loopholes: "Our tax code needs to be used to provide economic growth and create jobs. It cannot be used to punish individuals and small businesses that create jobs. With Florida's unemployment rate more than 9 percent, we just cannot exacerbate the situation with counterproductive tax policies."

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Medicare

Florida Tea Party Leader: GOP Medicare Plan A 'Public Policy Nightmare'

Brian Beutler | June 20, 2011, 11:29AM

Tea Party protesters on Capitol Hill

South Florida Tea Party Chairman Everett Wilkinson thinks the GOP budget -- and in particular its call to phase out Medicare and replace it with a marketplace for private insurance -- is a total disaster. He's saying that Republicans, including members in his sphere of influence like Rep. Allen West (R-FL), should back away from it.

In an email to fellow Tea Partiers last week, obtained by The Palm Beach Post, Wilkinson called the GOP plan a "public policy nightmare" that could trigger "huge Democratic wins in 2012," and prompt Republicans to blame the Tea Party for their losses.

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Allen West

Allen West Violates U.S. Flag Code, Goes Diving With American Flag

Jon Terbush | June 14, 2011, 12:16PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

In honoring the American flag, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) may have accidentally desecrated it -- while taking pictures of himself doing so.

On Sunday, West took a diving trip off the coast of Deerfield Beach with a group of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. As part of that dive, West, a veteran himself, planted an American flag on an artificial reef, and then posed for a photo op.

But as the New Times pointed out, in doing so, West actually violated a federal statute stating that the flag should never touch water.

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Allen West

Allen West: Military Needs More Money For Toilet Paper But It Doesn't Need More Gays

Ryan J. Reilly | May 31, 2011, 3:05PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

At a time when politicians are looking to cut back the federal budget, the United States needs to expand the military's budget, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) said Tuesday. Otherwise, the Tea Party favorite warned, troops could run out of toilet paper.

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Allen West

Sarah Palin's Bus Tour Off To Stormy Start After Chaotic Scene At Rolling Thunder (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | May 29, 2011, 1:55PM

ARLINGTON, VA -- Rep. Allen West (R-FL) was, until about a half hour before the Rolling Thunder motorcycle run began on Sunday, the most prominent politician in attendance. Then Sarah Palin showed up.

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Pres '12

Allen West Gives Thumbs Down To Gingrich's Call To Bring Back Voter Literacy Tests

Eric Kleefeld | May 17, 2011, 2:45PM

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) and Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Newt Gingrich is facing criticism for yet another idea he has floated during his presidential campaign -- that the country bring back tests for voting, which were banned by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 as a tool used to suppress African-American voters. Now, Think Progress reports, none other than Tea Party favorite Rep. Allen West (R-FL), an African-American, is disagreeing -- and referring to the sort of discrimination that his own parents faced.

Think Progress asked West about Gingrich's position that there should be a required knowledge of history in order to vote.

"I mean, that's going back to some, you know, times that my parents had to contend with," said West, who then segued into discussing his concerns with America's education system failing young people, and his admiration of a high school student in his district who has sought to be an intern for him.

He returned to the subject in conclusion: "I think that we need to do a better job educating our young men and women in school, but we don't need to have a litmus test, no."

In the pre-Voting Rights Act era, the Jim Crow states used literacy tests as a means of preventing African-Americans from registering to vote. Local registrars (who were all white) would often exempt white voters entirely or only give them a simple task, compared to a complex series of civics questions given to black citizens. (Here is an actual literacy test used in Alabama.)

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Medicare

Constituent Arrested At Allen West Town Hall Says She Was Maced In Jail (VIDEO)

Brian Beutler | April 28, 2011, 11:25AM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

A constituent arrested at a Florida town hall event in Rep. Allen West's district says she was singled out for political reasons, taken into custody under false pretenses, and maced in jail. And she has video to prove some, if not all, of it.

Nicole Sandler is a progressive radio show host*, and one of West's constituents. At a town hall event Tuesday, West was screening questions -- a departure from his usual practice of taking questions from audience members lined up at the mics. When he ducked a question about the House GOP plan to phase out Medicare and replace it with a private insurance system, Sandler shouted out a followup.

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Medicare

Rep. Allen West (R-FL): Medicare Will Destroy America

Benjy Sarlin | April 28, 2011, 9:49AM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

It can't be easy defending your party's plan to cut and privatize Medicare in retiree-heavy Boca Raton, Florida, but Rep. Allen West gave it his best shot on Wednesday. Questioned by constituents about the budget at a town hall, the freshman Republican warned that everyone is doomed with Medicare as is.

"I gotta tell you something: if you support Medicare the way it is now, you can kiss the United States of America goodbye," West said, according to local station WPTV.

The town hall drew a number of protesters, some of whom were led out of the event by security after heckling the Congressman. West's Democratic-leaning district is considered among the most vulnerable in 2012.

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Allen West

Allen West: 'Barack Hussein Obama' Is A 'Low-Level Socialist Agitator' (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | April 22, 2011, 12:16PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Appearing Thursday night on Fox News with Greta Van Susteren, freshman Rep. Allen West (R-FL) had some remarkably tough things to say about President Obama's recent address on the budget deficit and criticism of the Republican budget.

"I am sick and tired of this class warfare, this Marxist demagogic rhetoric that is coming from the President of the United States of America," said West. "It is not helpful for this country, and it's not gonna move the ball forward as far as rectifying the economic situation in our country. And I am not gonna back away from telling what the truth is."

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Medicare

New Dem PAC Launches Attack Ads Against GOPers Who Voted To End Medicare (AUDIO)

Brian Beutler | April 20, 2011, 11:16AM

Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI)

A new political action committee dedicated to ending the Republican majority in the House unveiled its first major ad buy Wednesday -- attacking Republicans for voting to end Medicare while giving wealthy Americans a tax cut.

"House Republicans are breaking the trust our country has with its seniors by ending Medicare as we know it, making them pay more for prescriptions drugs, and by forcing them to turn to the private health insurance market," said Alixandria Lapp, Executive Director of House Majority PAC, in a statement. "House Republicans have no problem asking seniors, middle class families and veterans to make sacrifices, yet refuse to do the same for big corporations and millionaires who would receive trillions in new tax breaks. We will hold House Republicans accountable for their backwards priorities."

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Allen West

Rep. Allen West: GOP Did A 'Good Job At Messaging' Ahead of Government Showdown

Ryan J. Reilly | April 11, 2011, 12:05PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

With Republican women dodging questions on abortion and a GOP freshman struggling to explain how defunding Planned Parenthood was about creating jobs, plenty of observers thought the Republicans lost the messaging war ahead of the government shutdown last week as the focus centered on social rather than fiscal issues. Not Rep. Allen West (R-FL).

West -- who isn't on board with the deal Republican and Democrats reached at the last hour to fund the federal government -- told reporters Friday that in his view, Republicans were on message.

"I think we did a good job at messaging, and the reason I think we did a good job at messaging is because the Democrats panicked and they started with the 'war on women,' 'killing women' and 'starving seniors' empty, emotional rhetoric," West said. "It's not working anymore."

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Government Shutdown

GOP Freshman Allen West Slams Republicans For Exploiting Troops in Shutdown Fight

Benjy Sarlin | April 8, 2011, 1:21PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Rep. Allen West (R-FL), a veteran who left the military after admitting to abusing an Iraqi policeman, is now slamming the GOP for exploiting the troops in the government shutdown fight.

The House passed a bill on Thursday funding the military for the next six months and keeping the government open another week, but Democratic leaders rejected the measure over its inclusion of $12 billion of additional cuts. Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) has accused Democrats of hurting troops, but West said in a statement to CBS on Thursday that he was "disgusted at the perception that Leaders in my own Party...are now using the men and women in uniform" even as he voted for the measure himself.

"The House Majority has now placed the funding for the Department of Defense and the funding for the troops down as a bargaining chip," West said. "In the last 100 days, the House Majority could have passed at any point in time a separate stand alone Appropriations for the Department of Defense and the funding for our men and women in uniform."

Allen West

Rep. Allen West To CAIR Director: 'Don't Try To Blow Sunshine Up My Butt' (VIDEO)

Meena Rupani | February 22, 2011, 3:57PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Rep. Allen West (R-FL.) became irate at a town hall meeting when Nezar Hamze, Executive Director of the Council for American Islamic Relations (CAIR) South Florida chapter, asked him to name the passage in the Quran that commands Muslims "to carry out attacks against Americans and innocent people." West brushed off the criticism -- and told Hamze not to "try to blow sunshine up my butt."

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CPAC

Allen West To Be Top Speaker At CPAC

Eric Kleefeld | February 9, 2011, 12:28PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Rep. Allen West (R-FL), is getting a high-level speaking post for a freshman -- the closing keynote speaker at CPAC.

This is a huge gig. Back in 2009, the closing speaker was none other than Rush Limbaugh, and in 2010 the honor went to Glenn Beck.

West, an Iraq War veteran whose military career ended after the alleged torture of an Iraqi policeman, has since gone on to emerge as a star of the conservative movement. (No evidence was found to corroborate the information obtained from the policeman, of an alleged planned attack against West's troops.)

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DCCC

DCCC Targets 19 Republicans Over Spending Cuts, Ethics Issues

Brian Beutler | January 31, 2011, 11:45AM

Rep. David Rivera (R-FL)

The DCCC is already targeting 19 Republicans from marginal districts with local radio ads.

For the most part, the ads criticize the members for supporting GOP spending cut proposals. But they're also going after a couple of members -- Reps. David Rivera (R-FL) and Mike Fitzpatrick (R-PA) -- who remain under ethical clouds.

"Did you know Congressman David Rivera is under criminal investigation for receiving secret payments from his mother's company?" says a narrator in the Rivera ad. "Tell Rivera to come clean so he can finally get to work for us."

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State Of The Union

Tea Party Newcomers Not Expecting Much From Obama After SOTU

Evan McMorris-Santoro | January 26, 2011, 10:34AM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

President Obama spent a little more than an hour last night trying to reach out to the new divided Congress in a State Of The Union that was long on centrism and, seemingly, short on division. But it's not clear Obama made the connection he was hoping to. Two high-profile members of the tea party freshman class on Capitol Hill told TPM after the speech that, while they appreciated the shift in rhetoric, they don't expect much to come from Obama's efforts to reach out to the right.

[TPM SLIDESHOW: 'Win The Future': President Obama's State Of The Union]

"Well, we'll see. We'll see," Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) said when I asked him if Obama had heard the message delivered by the voters in November. "Happy to hear him enforcing an earmark ban. Happy to hear about the possibility of simplifying the tax code and reducing the corporate tax rate. I was a little bit troubled and perplexed by what he means when he says all that and yet talks about new investment, investment, investment."

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Allen West

Allen West: If I Were President, I'd Visit Troops In Combat (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | January 6, 2011, 4:01PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Newly sworn-in Rep. Allen West (R-FL), an Iraq War veteran whose military career ended after a torture-related incident, is standing by his criticism that President Obama should fly directly out to the theaters of combat when he visits troops. And what's more, the new conservative star might also be getting just a bit ahead of himself on his political career.

West appeared last night on Lawrence O'Donnell's MSNBC show, and stood by his comments in a colorful way:

"Lawrence, I'm not going to retract that statement, because I will tell you this -- if I was sitting at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, I would fly into a combat theater and I would get out there and visit those troops wherever they are. That's just the type of leader that I am, and that's what I believe in. And that's the type of leadership that was instilled in me, and my father who, when I was commissioned as a second lieutenant back in 1982, he said that the number one job for you, Lieutenant West, is to take care of your man -- especially when you go into combat."

Hmm, could this be a sneak preview of a running-mate convention speech in 2012?

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Allen West

Tea Party Rep. Reflects On The Big Day: 'We've Crossed The Rubicon'

Evan McMorris-Santoro | January 5, 2011, 6:18PM

Rep. Allen West (R-FL)

Freshman Rep. Alan West (R-FL) stood in the Speaker's Lobby after John Boehner took over this afternoon and reflected on an election season that saw the tea party -- of which West is one of the most colorful elected members -- ascend to the halls of power in Washington. It's been a long road for conservatives like West, and he told me that to sit in the room and watch Speaker Nancy Pelosi's reign come to an end was pretty darn great.

"We've crossed the Rubicon," he said, flashing a huge grin. But he acknowledged that today's pomp and circumstance on Capitol Hill are just the first steps on what is likely to be a tough road ahead for the divided Congress, and even the House GOP caucus, of which West is an ultra-conservative part.

"My biggest concern is that in the 90 to 120 days we start showing the positive trends so that the American people know that we are working toward a limited government that is effective and efficient, that we are working toward the spending and the debt and deficit and we are working toward getting people back to work," West said.

That's a goal West likely shares with most if not all of his Republican colleagues (and his Democratic colleagues too). But going about doing that is not as easy as, say, handing the gavel to Boehner, as the House Republicans unanimously voted to do today.

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Allen West

Allen West: Fiery Radio Host Who Was Almost My Chief Of Staff Helped Pick My New One (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | January 3, 2011, 12:01PM

Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL)

Appearing over the weekend on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL) stood by talk radio host Joyce Kaufman, who almost became his chief of staff but withdrew as a result on media coverage of her various controversial remarks -- and, he added, she interviewed his actual incoming chief of staff for him.

Wallace: Congressman West, you chose and we can now put her picture up on the screen, a radio talk show host, Joyce Kaufman, as your chief of staff. But when it came out that she had called Nancy Pelosi "garbage" and told a Tea Party rally, "if balance don't work, bullets will," she stepped down. What did you learn from that whole experience?

West: Well, I think first of all what you saw was an attack from the left against Joyce Kaufman -- and there are some other issues with that -- but they did not play the full clip of her speech when she gave that, I think it was the 4th of July. So once again, it was the editing sound bite.

And I didn't learn anything from it, because you just adjust and you continue on. So Joyce Kaufman was a very instrumental and helpful person in our campaign, and she was the one that interviewed our current chief of staff, because she knows the good match.

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Republicans

Meet The Five Incoming Republicans Who Might Have GOP Leaders Sweating Bullets

Brian Beutler | November 26, 2010, 9:28AM

Austin Scott, Allen West, Renee Ellmers, David Rivera, and Blake Farenthold

A manual for incoming freshman Republicans, distributed by GOP leadership is meant to help them hit the ground running -- but also to stay out of trouble.

"It is important to keep in mind that even if you haven't violated any rules, the appearance of impropriety can be just as damaging. So always be certain that everything you do as a member is -- and appears to be -- above board," it reads.

With scores of new members, many untested in politics, coming to Washington, it's inevitable that at least a few will keep leadership awake at night, wondering if and how they might embarrass the party. Everyone's been put on notice, but here are five GOPers who, given their past scrapes, will likely be getting the gimlet eye from the top brass.

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Allen West

Allen West: Gov't Should Have 'Put Out... Feelers' On TSA Pat Downs

Ryan J. Reilly | November 21, 2010, 1:42PM

Congressman-elect Allen West thinks the Transportation Security Administration did a poor job marketing their security procedures, and "should have put out some type of feelers" and explained the process to in a more comprehensive say.

"It comes back marketing. We should have put out some type of feelers and talked to the American people about this before we implimented this type of plan," West said on Meet the Press.

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Allen West

Allen West Doubles Down On Support Of Anti-Gov't Radio Host: Criticism Is 'Absolutely Reprehensible'

Jillian Rayfield | November 16, 2010, 1:57PM

Joyce Kaufman and Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL)

On ABC's Top Line today, Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL) doubled down on his support of his almost-chief of staff, right-wing talk radio host Joyce Kaufman. Kaufman backed out of the job after increased attention to her pro-insurgency rhetoric.

She's a "very brilliant political mind," West said today.

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FL-22

West Backs Kaufman Against 'This Left-Wing, Vile, Vicious, Despicable Machine'

Eric Kleefeld | November 12, 2010, 12:24PM

Joyce Kaufman and Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL)

Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL) is standing by the honor of his almost-chief of staff, right-wing talk radio host Joyce Kaufman, who pulled out of the job after media attention focused on her violent anti-government statement. And he's using some colorful language himself to describe her detractors.

As the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel reports, West called into Kaufman's radio show Thursday:

He said he wanted people, especially those "on the left," to understand that Kaufman would continue "to fight on your battlefield" here, and he "will fight them on the battlefield in Washington, D.C., and we will meet in the middle after we soundly defeat them both."

The Congressman-elect said he's now "even more focused that this liberal, progressive, socialist agenda, this left-wing, vile, vicious, despicable machine that's out there is soundly brought to its knees. You don't have to worry about me doing the right thing in Washington, D.C."

West also concluded the interview: "I'll see you on the high ground."

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FL-22

Report: Kaufmann Was Inspiration For Threats Against Broward Schools

Eric Kleefeld | November 11, 2010, 2:39PM

Joyce Kaufman

Did Joyce Kaufman, the South Florida right-wing radio talk show host who was named (and then unnamed) as Republican Rep.-elect Allen West's chief of staff, inspire the deranged person whose threats led to yesterday's lock down of Broward County public schools, libraries and post offices? It looks that way.

As you might recall, someone emailed Kaufman's radio station, WFTL, declaring that he or she was planning a violent act against some kind of government building, possibly a school. A phone call to the station yesterday, from a woman identifying herself as the e-mailer's wife, later warned that this man could potentially commit a terrorist act against a public school. That prompted a countywide lock down of all public schools.

The local Fox affiliate since reported that the threat-maker had said he was inspired by none other than Joyce Kaufman, who had received publicity in the last few days for her previous calls for violent action against the government in order to protect citizens from the tyranny of the Obama administration.

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