Florida's elections this year don't lack entertainment. You name it, we got it. Ron Klein is an everyday kind of guy who's facing rough and tumble Allen West.
Allen West's primary opponent, David Brady, broke Republican lock step and endorsed Ron Klein a Democrat, for FL-22. That seems to be the new normal when the tea party wins primaries. Ron Klein is the better candidate for several reasons.
Allen West is one for the books.
I figure win or lose, West is worth a tv movie.
You just can't make this stuff up!
Last week Allen West's campaign had a dust up with NBC's Lisa Myers. It was just the latest embarrassment concerning Allen West. Myers had a segment that drew a line between The Outlaws motorcycle gang (who's up to their nostrils in the meth trade) and a motorcycle publication that Allen West contributes too called Wheels on the Road. (I reproduced his image from WOTR.)
West supporters are trying to downplay the association, but they're disregarding the motorcycle gang culture of both The Outlaws and the type of behavior Wheels on the Road is all about, which is ahhh, um, well, let's not mince words.... The group stands for the traditional values of oppression, repression, belief in stereotypes and misogyny. Do we want a Congressional member that doesn't question The Outlaws or WOTR?
Wheels on the Road publishes multiple articles that denigrate women or tell of assaulting women (see the April 2010 issue - I think). Wheels on the Road often features pictures of women exposing their breasts, but not as classy as they do in Playboy (snark). They also speak fondly of women but probably not for the right reasons.
WOTR also publicizes Outlaw events. Besides the obvious issue of a prospective congressional member hobnobbing with perpetrators of the meth trade; The Outlaws have little if any respect for women as they are up to their hips in prostitution and sex slavery. Again, it's a question of judgment and the Sun Sentinel parsed out the story for you to review.
On the other hand, WOTR also publishes non-controversial information specific to motorcycle aficionados. According to Ron Klein's web site Allen West was to be a speaker at a WOTR event last Saturday, but he canceled due to this brouhaha.
West supporters say there can be no association between Allen West and The Outlaws because The Outlaws don't admit African Americans, Jews or gays. (Women don't get membership either, their status is based upon .....their behavior. You can look up The Outlaws web sites, but I'm not linking to them.) Anyway, that's why Wheels on the Road exists. They are the warm, fuzzy side of a motorcycle gang and this is the group West cannot deny knowing - his picture is on their website and his name is a speaker on their event flyers.
It's worth a look to determine if Allen West has an association with The Outlaws via WOTR. Unfortunately, I have some experience with these men and they can be very nice until you tick them off. Let me give you some advice, Don't. Tick. Them. Off.
If Allen West can get along well with The Outlaws auxillary, then it's something to look at before voting for him.
Putting the Motorcycles Aside
Allen West is quite a character. He's a no holds barred interrogator, which led to his leaving the military. Allen West does take prisoners and he scares the shit out of them. He's an ex-military officer that had trouble following prisoner handling protocols. On the heels of Abu Ghraib, Allen West had no chance of remaining in the military after discharging his weapon behind the ear of a corrupt Iraqi police officer. Some of those who want to see West become a member of congress say West is a war hero. His "men" liked him. It's just that the one "indiscretion" couldn't be ignored. He's lucky he isn't in Leavenworth. Instead, he got an "honorable" discharge and a $5,000 fine.
Allen West is a results oriented former Lt. Colonel. He got his man, he made the man "talk" by allowing him to be beaten and fired a pistol by his head when he wouldn't say what West wanted to hear. West defends his actions by saying "If it is about the safety and lives of my men, I'm willing to go through hell with a gasoline can" (he forgot self-preservation - the Iraqi supposedly had info on a plan to assassinate West). OooooKay, Allen West could give John McCain maverick lessons. I'm glad I don't live in district 22. I can just see an elderly person going to West's office to detangle a Medicare Advantage problem.... I'm not sure what would happen, would the elderly person be denigrated for using Medicare Advantage..... or would West's office treat insurance companies like a corrupt Iraqi police officer? Who would be "the men" West is willing to carry gasoline for? hmmmm, that's food for thought....
In a surprise move the VFW PAC endorsed Ron Klein over Allen West for this seat, which stirred up quite a bit of controversy. It seems that a lot of vets couldn't understand why Ron Klein (and other Democratic candidates like Barbara Boxer) is the better choice for vets. More than that, it seems the VFW PAC endorsed a bunch of Democratic candidates and were silenced for exercising their Right to Free Speech. Maybe it's Ron Klein's positions on veteran's benefits? Maybe the Democratic candidates were more protective of soldiers and veterans than the Republican candidates? With the VFW PAC board dissolved, yep, the entire Board was fired; we'll never know.....
Pushing the Gasoline Aside
In The Great Recession it isn't unusual to hear about people having financial difficulties. Problems started popping up in 2008, but West had IRS liens placed on him in 2005. He had financial difficulties in 2006. Politifact went middle of the road and said Klein's accusations were mostly true - the fact that the West's were able to satisfy a lien in 4 months reduced the charge from fully true to mostly true. As a former banker, I can say if I read a credit report that had a lien on it, even if it was satisfied, I'd think twice about the risk of that prospective client and my supervisor would read me the riot act if I went ahead and accepted him as a client. The lien was filed and the West's paid it, that makes the accusation TRUE. The IRS doesn't go to the trouble of filing liens when they are having meaningful and productive dialogs with people who owe them money (I know this, because I have a dear friend who was an IRS collector for 20 years). Look, times are hard, but West's problems predate The Great Recession. West's plea for leniency doesn't pass the sniff test.
Ok, Sliding the Money Off the Table
It's hard to understand why Allen West is considered an acceptable candidate for Congress. It's hard to fathom how he's done so well in the polls. It's obvious, that the voters supporting West don't see this man as a giant step backward. They see what they want to see, not the reality. West will not support his constituents, he'll advance his own agenda of intolerance, hate and negativity and he'll be a badass to anyone who disagrees with him. Allen West will contribute to the problems in the House of Representatives, he won't be a solution.