11.9.12
I’m sure Allen West has a bright future.
Just not anywhere around here. That ought to be clear by now.
Congressman West made a big splash on South Florida’s political scene as a buffoonish bitter commando who wanted to “take our country back from tyrants.”
Using the language of the battlefield, and still wearing his military decorations on his civilian clothes, West’s tough-guy routine played well with the tea party crowd.
And it got him into Congress two years ago during a high-water mark for political scoundrels. (See Scott, Rick)
But all that “get your musket, fix your bayonets” talk from West got tiring.
There’s a limited shelf life for paranoid lectures on Marxism, Saul Alinsky’s playbook, and secret Communists in Congress. And before long, it dawned on an electorally significant number of his constituents that they were stuck with an arrested-development congressman who is more of a WWF version of Sarah Palin than a problem solver.
West tried to fix his bluster fatigue by switching districts this year, moving from Broward County to northern Palm Beach County, which is part of a more Republican-friendly district that stretches into the Treasure Coast.
It looked to be a retreat strategy that guaranteed him at least another two years in Congress.
His campaign had a staggering $17 million to spend. And the only Democrat standing in his way was an unknown 29-year-old challenger named Patrick Murphy, a political novice who could be outspent five to one.
This was asymmetrical warfare.
Murphy had little going for him, and to make matter worse, he had the misfortune of getting arrested at age 19 during a boozy night in Miami Beach — the same time that West was shipping out with the Army to Iraq.
The attack ads showing Murphy’s jail booking mug amounted to a shock-and-awe campaign that carpet bombed South Florida TV sets for weeks.
Murphy should have been doomed.
And yet, when the results were tallied Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning, Murphy held a narrow lead over West, who suddenly had to summon lawyers instead of bayonets, to file legal challenges on the results, and hope for a swing in the final tally from yet-to-be-counted absentee and provisional ballots.
“This race is far from decided and there is no rush to declare an outcome,” West said in a prepared statement on Wednesday.
But the outcome is clear. Even if West ends up squeaking out a narrow win in the final count.
He’s toast in this part of Florida. It’s as apparent as the words of Martin County Sheriff Bob Crowder, a Republican who ran against West in the primary and endorsed Murphy before this week’s election.
“As a Republican for over 30 years, I’m embarrassed by the radical fringe that has taken over the party,” Crowder said in his endorsement. “Sadly, Allen West is their poster child, and the hateful, divisive comments he’s made throughout this campaign make it clear to me he’s the wrong choice for our district.”
If West intends to have a long political career, he’s going to need to stay on the move, to retreat yet again.
Fortunately for him, there are still many safe havens in America for radical fringe Republicans. And if all else fails, there’s Fox News.
So, West’s got a bright future. Just not here.
- Palm Beach Post
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