House Democrats seek -- but fail -- to chastise Allen West for likening them to Nazis

House Republicans voted against taking up a resolution that would have scolded Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, for likening the messaging of the Democratic Party to that of Hitler's propaganda machine.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 231-188 to table the resolution, which was sponsored by Rep. Donna Edwards, D-Md. The vote was largely along party lines.

Several Jewish organizations asked West to apologize last week after he compared the messaging of the Democratic Party to that of Nazis.

"If Joseph Goebbels was around, he’d be very proud of the Democrat Party, because they have an incredible propaganda machine," West told reporters Thursday afternoon in Washington. "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."

The Anti-Defamation League said it was "deeply dismayed" by what West said. “Such outrageous Holocaust analogies have no place in our political dialogue," said Abraham H. Foxman, the ADL's national director as well as a Holocaust survivor. "They are offensive, they trivialize real historical events, and they diminish the memory of the six million Jews and millions of others who perished in the Holocaust."

Edwards said Tuesday in a statement that West's "outrageous and insensitive remarks" have "no place in our nation’s political discourse." "This privileged resolution states clearly that this distasteful behavior cannot and will not be tolerated in the House of Representatives," she said. "The American people demand and deserve true leaders who are willing to work together to solve the nation’s economic and fiscal challenges. I ask my congressional colleagues to join me in sending a clear message that we share that priority."

West's spokeswoman Angela Sachitano said in an e-mail that he had no comment. Democrats have "stooped to a new level in their attempts to bring down Representative West, who they have deemed a threat to their power," she said. "Here we are in the midst of serious congressional business, and they are focusing their energy on Representative West."

West, a freshman Republican from a heavily Jewish district in South Florida, made the remarks when he being asked about why the GOP was doing so poorly in pools. A poll released last week by the Pew Research Center found people blame Republicans more than Democrats for Washington's gridlock. The Pew poll warned that public discontent with Congress has reached record levels, a prospect that could make re-election challenging for Republican incumbents.

West told reporters last week that Republicans needed to get better at messaging, and when asked whether to clarify that he was likening Democrats to Nazis, said that reporters would twist his words to suit their agenda.

U.S. House to U.S. Senate: We're not passing your payroll tax cut as-is

The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday blew off the Senate's bipartisan proposal to extend a payroll tax cut for two months, instead voting for a conference committee that would work on a bill with the Senate.  

Problem is, the Senate is already gone home for the holidays, and won't be returning until Jan. 23. And if the extenstion isn't approved, an estimated 160 million people will see lighter paychecks beginning in January. The tax cut is about $1,000 a year for families, the White House said. 

President Barack Obama told Republicans shortly after their vote that they need to "come together right now and do the right thing," noting that the Senate was able to do so, even if it means they must return after the holiday break to negotiate extending the two-month period to a year. "We have more important things to worry about than politics right now," Obama said. 

But House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, wasn't able to muster the votes to pass the Senate bill with the two-month extenstion, and didn't schedule a vote that would have failed -- and would have painted Republicans as raising people's taxes. Instead of voting on the Senate bill, House Republicans voted to meet with the Senate to work out their differences on the tax cut legislation. Boehner went as far as to appoint six "conferees."  

Tuesday's 229-193 House vote was largely along party lines, although seven Republicans did vote with Democrats. Miami Republican Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and David Rivera voted to go to conference with the Senate on the bill, as did and Rep. Allen West,  R-Plantation. Democratic Reps. Frederica Wilson of Miami, Alcee Hastings of Miramar, Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Weston and Ted Deutch of Boca Raton voted for it. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Miami, didn't vote -- his office said he was anavailable because of a family medical issue. Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fort Myers, who is running for U.S. Senate in Florida, also voted with fellow Republicans on the bill. 

Note: Both Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., voted for the two-month payroll tax cut extension last week in the Senate, where it passed 89-10.

Federal spending bill passes, without Cuba language

The House of Representatives approved a $915 billion federal spending package this afternoon that will keep the government running through Sept. 30 of next year. The Senate is expected to approve the spending plan as soon as Saturday. 

The bill passed 296 to 121. And that was with the vote of Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Miami, who authored a controversial provision rolling back Cuba travel and remittances to Bush-administration levels. The amendment -- which the White House opposed -- nearly hung up budget negotiations as the federal government neared a shut-down. In the end, the Diaz-Balart proposal was stripped from the bill. 

After the vote, Diaz-Balart put out a statement sputtering with anger at the White House. His amendment was proposed during the committee process with "bipartisan support," he said.

"The approved language has been publicly available since June and was included in the conference report– then later stripped out. The language was not inserted secretly, it was not a surprise, nor the result of sly political gamesmanship," he said.

He then lashed out at President Barack Obama's foreign policy: "President Obama's willingness to shut down the United States government to appease a U.S.-designated State Sponsor of Terrorism is appalling and inexcusable," he said. "I hope that the American people see that President Obama would deny Americans essential services, halt checks to our seniors and veterans rather than reverse one aspect of his failed policy toward Cuba."

Miami GOP Rep. David Rivera was the only South Florida House member to vote against it -- he, too, backed the Cuba language panned by the White House. Rivera went a step beyond Diaz-Balart, calling the president the "Castro brothers’ best ally and chief lobbyist in Washington."

"My vote against this budget is intended to demonstrate my willingness to continue fighting the Obama administration’s policy of appeasement and unilateral concessions toward the Castro regime," he said.

Republican Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Miami and Allen West of Plantation voted for the spending bill, as did Democratic Reps. Frederica Wilson of Miami, Alcee Hastings of Miramar, Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Weston and Ted Deutch of Boca Raton voted for it.

The spending bill affects a wide range of federal programs, and incorporates many of the cuts lawmakers agreed to earlier this year. Among the cuts are Federal Emergency Management Agency grants to first responders. The money was cut by $1 billion to $2.4 billion.

In addition, the measure bars money to transfer, release or assist in the transfer or release of Guantanamo Bay detainees "to or within the United States or its territories."

Once again, Allen West is asked to apologize for something he said

 

The National Jewish Democratic Council has asked Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, to apologize for comments he made Thursday likening the messaging of the Democratic Party to the propaganda machine of Hitler's Germany.

“If Joseph Goebbels was around, he’d be very proud of the Democrat Party, because they have an incredible propaganda machine," West told reporters 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."

The NJDC asked West to "apologize sincerely and immediately. As we have said repeatedly, invoking the Holocaust to make a political point is never acceptable and should be condemned by all for the sake of the memory of those who were lost."

West's comments elicited a handwritten rebuke from Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich. In the letter, obtained by Politico, Conyers notes Goebbels was a "vicious and notorious anti-Semite" and calls on West to "help raise the level of congressional discourse in vigorous debate"  without resorting to personal attacks.

West, a freshman Republican from a heavily Jewish district in South Florida, was being asked about why the GOP was doing so poorly in polls -- a new Pew poll finds people blame Republicans more than Democrats for Washington's gridlock, the Washington Post reported.

West told reporters that Republicans needed to get better at messaging.

And then, apparently realizing the impact of his remarks (see here for previous West coverage), he said this, according to Politico:

"I'm talking about propaganda, OK," he said. "Don't start taking my words and twisting it around. I'm talking about propaganda. And I think that's a very important thing. When you tell me that everyone thinks that the only people on Capitol Hill are House Republicans, it's because that's what's being portrayed, is that there's nobody else up here."

"Once again, you guys will take whatever I say and you will spin it to try to demonize me or demagogue me,” West added. “What I'm talking about is a person that was the minister of propaganda. And I'm talking about propaganda. So please. I'll be prepared to wake up tomorrow and you guys make up some crazy story. Whatever."

 

No surprise -- South Florida House members go party line on payroll tax cut extension

The House just passed a GOP version of the payroll tax cut extension 294-193, largely along party lines. 

It's got some toxic provisions for most Democrats, including a measure that would speed up construction of the Keystone pipeline from Canada. 

Miami GOP Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and David Rivera voted for it, as did Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation.

Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Miami, Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Miramar, and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Weston, and Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, voted against it. 

The White House panned the House vote: "This is not a time for Washington Republicans to score political points against the President."

U.S. House fails to pass a balanced budget amendment

The U.S. House of Representatives turned down a balanced budget amendment Friday afternoon, with Florida's congressional delegation largely voting along party lines. Although the proposal had 261 votes, 165 members voted against it and it was 29 short of the two-thirds majority needed for passage. Just four Republicans voted against the bill; 25 Democrats voted for it. 

Miami GOP Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and David Rivera voted for the amendment, as did Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation.

Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Miami, Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Miramar, and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Weston, voted against it. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, did not vote. 

Allen West will be a CPAC headliner

The American Conservative Union says U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, will be a featured speaker at next year's Conservative Political Action Conference.

The conference, which is in early February in Washington D.C., is the largest gathering of conservative activists and conservative leaders in the country. The group's 2012 conference will feature grassroots training "to strengthen the conservative movement and ensure conservatives have the resources and tools necessary to defeat the Obama agenda in 2012," ACU said.

PolitiFact Florida: Rep. Allen West trots out Medicare talking points

Republican U.S. Rep. Allen West pulled out some familiar talking points on the 2010 health care law in a recent Fox News interview.

It was Democrats who cut $500 billion from Medicare, he said. An unelected board will make decisions about health care for seniors and all Americans, he said.

Similar statements by Republican politicians have earned rulings from Half True to False.

But in the world of PolitiFact, specific word choice matters.

How do West's words hold up?

 

Boca's Lynn University will host the third presidential debate next year

The Commission on Presidential Debates announced its presidential and vice presidential debate sites today, and the final of the three showdowns will be in Florida at Boca Raton's Lynn University.

The first is Oct. 3 at the University of Denver in Denver, Colo. The vice presidential debate will be Oct. 11 at Centre College, Danville, Ky. Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. will host the second presidential debate -- a town hall-style event. And Lynn University will close out the series with the final Oct. 22 debate. 

Obviously the Republican field isn't set yet, but here's President Barack Obama's campaign manager Jim Messina on the debate schedule: "The President looks forward to next year’s debates. Once the Republicans have selected their candidate, we will work through the details with their campaign and the Commission on Presidential Debates."

Lynn University was one of 12 sites nationwide -- and the only institution in Florida -- under consideration to host the debates produced by the CPD, the school said in a press release.

"Being an undergraduate or graduate student here on our campus when such an historic event takes place will provide a singular and unparalleled educational experience," said the university's president, Kevin Ross.

Republican U.S. Rep. Allen West, who represents Boca Raton in Congress, had this to say on the school's selection:  

"After visiting Lynn's campus and meeting with University administrators earlier this year, I quickly realized the potential for Lynn's Wold Performing Arts Center to be a candidate to host the Presidential debates. I immediately took the lead in drafting a bipartisan and bicameral letter signed by every member of the Florida Congressional Delegation to the Commission on Presidential Debates in support of Lynn's application."

"The state of Florida has historically been a major decision maker in a number of national elections throughout our nation’s history and will be a critical state for both parties in the upcoming Presidential election. Securing the final Presidential Debate for the 2012 election is further reason to recognize the importance of the state of Florida in this decisive time in our nation's history."

Rumsfeld to raise money for Allen West

Politico's lobbying-and-fundraising tipsheet, Politico Influence, reports that former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will help Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation raise money next week in Washington.

Politico reports that Rumsfeld is listed as a "special guest" for what it describes as a defense industry breakfast on Oct. 27. The fundraiser will be hosted by Buzz Hefti, a defense lobbyist and former Marine. 

Another multimillion dollar campaign is underway for the seat held by Allen. Two Democrats are raising hundreds of thousands of dollars in an effort to unseat West, and West himself continues to be one of the top fundraisers in Florida.

Democrat Patrick Murphy, a CPA, raised $314,351 over the past three months, according to Federal Election Commission reports filed this weekend. He has $741,976 in the bank. Former West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel raised $417,872, according to the FEC. She has $883,714 in cash on hand.  

West raised $1.9 million, but spent $1.4 million of that on expensive professional fundraisers and solicitation lists. So although he has raised $4.1 million so far this campaign season, he has only $1.8 million of that on hand, according to the FEC reports.