Allen West being redistricted out of existence in effort led by Romney Florida spokesman
The establishment is fighting back, alright.
This has not received a lot of national attention, but the Republican legislature in Florida is about to push through a plan which puts Allen West at serious risk, and the person leading the effort is one of Mitt Romney’s spokemen. As reported by The Shark Tank:
After last night’s [Jan. 26] Republican Presidential debate, the candidates’ respective spinmeisters made their cases to the media as to why their guy won the debate. One of Governor Mitt Romney’s spokesmen was Florida Representative Will Weatherford, and during the course of his remarks in the “Spin Room”, he shed a very dim light on the ongoing redistricting process in the Florida Legislature….
West’s congressional district inexplicably sheds the most out support as compared to all other incumbent Republican and Democrat Congressman. A few weeks back we quoted an unnamed legislator saying that, “Allen West was screwed”, a statement which was originally made about made five months before the purposed maps were made public, leading insiders to believe that the fix was in against Allen West. But in light of Weatherford’s comment, it is increasingly clear that this is a fait accompli.
According to Weatherford, those preliminary maps will not change- at the most, any additional changes would be minimal, and those changes would not make any appreciable difference from the preliminary maps. In addition, Weatherford stated that a deal was struck between him, Senate President Mike Haridopolos, and Senator Don Gaetz to finalize these maps and push them through as soon as possible.
Weatherford tried to hide behind a need to comply with [state and] federal law, but that’s obviously a dodge since there could have been many ways to comply yet not sacrifice West:
A website, SaveAllenWest, had been set up, but it appears to be too late.
One of the rising stars of the Tea Party is about to be sacrificed by the Republican establishment in Florida, led by someone spinning for Mitt Romney.
Don’t say you weren’t warned.
Update 1-30-2012: Florida redistricting looking even worse and Dem SuperPAC targeting “Tea Party 10″.
Also, Will Weatherford: The Florida legislature has NOT targeted Allen West
Update No. 2 1-30-2012: Mark Levin interviewed West on January 30. West stated that maps were submitted to the legislature which would have kept his district intact and still been in compliance with state and federal law. Levin said he did not believe the excuses being made that the map had to be drawn the way it was as a matter of law.
+76-4
Comments
After we get Newt nominated, he would be wise to offer Col. West a cabinet or white house advisory position. He (and we) would be well served by Col. West.
Someone above posted: “Can you give me one good reason why having Romney in the WH would be better than Obama?”
Yes, I can. First lets address this situation from the point of view that considers who will derive what benefits, and who will become injured under any given outcome. In addition, I would put forward that the most mature person typically benefits in a conflict or a sea of confusion and frustration.
With respect to benefits vs down-side, consider that Obama is ruining our economy, he is engaged in abhorrent crony capitalism, he wants to have totally socialized medicine and he is a diminutive person who resents people of accomplishment. If you feel that you will derive some benefit from him serving another four years – by all means – you should vote for him or sit out the election. Either course of action will help him to get re-elected. If you feel that Romney will be as bad as Obama – I would encourage you to think a bit more about this matter.
Now lets consider some of the tenets of maturity that make a person wise and more prone to acting in a manner that is optimal under in an y difficult situation. One of the things that separates mature people from immature people is tolerance of frustration. Clearly, the current state of our nation is one that is conducive to people feeling very frustrated. The question is what do you do with your frustration? Do you just throw up your hands, have a temper tantrum and resort to histrionic, woe-was-me complaining? This would be the path of intolerance for frustration and I submit it is counterproductive. People who elect to behave like this are less apt to derive any benefit from it.
Another tenet of maturity is being able to assess the risks inherent in any situation and formulate a plan from which they will be most apt to derive the maximum benefit. Emotions have nothing whatsoever to do with this. When we assess risk, we consider both the likelihood of an occurrence and the significance of an occurrence should one occur. People do this when they cross the train tracks. While the likelihood of an occurrence (getting hit by a train) is very low, the significance of getting hit by a train is very high. Immature people thus drive across the tracks without looking. Cemeteries are full of such people. What harm does anyone derive from slowing down and looking to see if a train is approaching?
Now, when we consider the re-election of Obama, the issue of whether or not it will occur is not the issue, because there are factors out of our control that will determine the outcome. That said, when we consider the significance of Obama getting re-elected, most people can extrapolate from what he has done to date and make a reasonable assumption about what he will do in the future. If you like what he has done – vote for him. If not, don’t.
All the other side shows about whether Romney used nefarious methods or if Gingrich was this or that are irrelevant to the issue of Obama getting re-elected. Again, when the election comes about, the sole considerations each of us must address is the extent to which we feel we may derive a benefit or some injury from having Obama in the WH for another four years – and the extent of the damage Obama is likely to do if re-elected.
If you’re a conservative reading this blog, the choices should be clear.
Sorry, with all the flip-flops by Mr. Romney he is “ObamaLite” and will be as much a danger to America as Mr. Obama/Mrs Pelosi/Mr. Reid have been. But it really doesn’t matter, he will lose in the general election and point fingers, whine and cry. He’s the wrong candidate at the wrong time.
Rich Vail
Pikesville, Maryland
http://thevailspot.blogspot.com
Read your post twice. Still have no idea what argument you were trying to make.
To begin with, stating that ‘emotions have nothing whatsoever to do with this’ is plainly ridiculous. If I didn’t know better, I’d be led to believe I was dealing with one of those ‘elitist’ secularists trying to prove their intellectual superiority (smarty pants from this part of the south). Those very human emotions – the heated arguments, debates and outright fights between separationists & loyalists, the Articles or re-written Constitution, Bill of Rights & their opposition – are what breathed the very life into this most Liberty-giving Republic the world has ever seen!
“The known propensity of a democracy is to licentiousness which the ambitious call, and ignorant believe to be liberty.” –Fisher Ames, speech in the Massachusetts Ratifying Convention, 1788
With that, I believe, with the unanimous agreement of this site’s subscribers, I can assure you that I will never vote for the Democratic (capital ‘D’) simply because there is absolutely nothing of their platform that I can, with good conscience, agree with. However, I believe the point being made is the lack of principle – First Principles – on which this “animated contest of Freedom” was founded is lacking in ALL of these ‘cunning, ambitous and unprincipled men’ that our founders WARNED us of. A tablespoon of socialism or a shovel full? That’s what you advocate.
As one of the great minds, from whom our founders drew on, especially on Natural Law and Liberty, Montesquieu said “The deterioration of a government begins almost always by the decay of its principles.”, from Montesquieu’s The Spirit of the Laws, VIII, ch. 1, 1748.
West should run for Senate. Or be considered for VP. Or SecDef.
[...] Story during Legal Insurrection [...]
Here are Florida redistricting suggestions, the present map is the bottom most, as you can see the present district is very ugly, and they had some ballot initiative to ban freaky redistricting, that’s the reason, Allen West’s didstrict is surrounded by blue districticts and one swing disctirct to hard to keep
http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2011/reports/redistricting/congress.shtml
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/findyourreps.xpd?state=FL&district=22
Florida Congressional District Boundaries Amendment appeared on the November 2, 2010 ballot in Florida as an initiated constitutional amendment where it was approved. The measure proposed amending the current practice of drawing congressional district boundaries in such ways that they establish “fairness,” are “as equal in population as feasible” and use “city, county and geographical boundaries.” Florida CD-22, West’s district, doesn’t really take into account “city, county and geographical bound.
Florida CD-22, West’s district, doesn’t really take into account “city, county and geographical boundaries”. In google maps, it seems to in general pick up neighborhoods with golf and other green areas, lots of bonds and pools, and pass many neighborhoods that lack them.
Links about amendments that limit redistricting, they were put in by Florida peolle http://www.collinscenter.org/page/1gFLAmAmend5and6_MS
http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Florida_Congressional_District_Boundaries,_Amendment_6_(2010)
Also here is 2010 house election map, yuo can see how allen wests disctrict is mosly surrounded by democrat districts, and it’s weird shape enables makes it a swing district rather than Democrat leaning district. http://elections.nytimes.com/2010/results/house
There are tools for people to draw their own redistricting maps, put them online, with all the information, showing what is swing and which leans where, those who want to prove that Allen West is victim of some conspiracy, should put up their own redistricting plan online, with all 27 distritcs, that show how to save Allen West’s district without causing republicans to lose more districtis elsewhere. Represent them in similar format as on this site:
http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2011/reports/redistricting/congress.shtml
If you can’t do that, stop spreading conspiracies.
[...] Jacobson at Legal Insurrection is convinced the fix is in [...]
Linked:
THIS IS WAR: If They Succeed in Forcing a Romney Nomination On Us, The Republican Establishment Must Be Destroyed
I get awfully tired of this “establishment” stuff. No one is trying to force Romney on you. He’s a candidate. People vote for him or not. A lot of people who actually know what they’re talking about (try it some time) dislike Gingrich because (a) he has not consistently been conservative, (b) he is dishonest (just ask his ex-wives), (c) he is unreliable except as a self promoter, which he does very well. When people start to figure that out, they tend not to want to vote for him. Unless they’ve, you know, drunk the Kool Aid.
Speaking of Kool-Aid, do you know what I bet is a downright nasty tasting brand? That would be that RINO flavored shit you’re drinking here.
[...] One thing for sure this isn’t a conspiracy. [...]
It is important to listen to the audio clip. There is no conspiracy to hurt Allen West nor does it have anything to do with Mitt Romney. The blog here claims that “there could have been many ways to comply yet not sacrifice West.” But none of those other ways are mentioned. Trying to tie Romney to the details of Florida redistricting law isn’t helpful.
I was planning on voting for Romney because I don’t think Newt can beat Obama. If this crap is true about trying to re-district Al West out of the House, he can kiss my vote goodbye. He can also kiss the votes of my entire family goodbye. I’m Mormon and I’m a veteran.
If you mess with Al West, I’m not going to vote for you. No matter who you are. Period.
I’d vote for Al West over the entire field of current, or past, candidates.
[...] the narrow, antiseptic way to put the matter. Legal Insurrection and Shark Tank put it differently, suggesting “GOP establishment” complicity in singling West [...]
[...] the narrow, antiseptic way to put the matter. Legal Insurrection and Shark Tank put it differently, suggesting “GOP establishment” complicity in singling West [...]
[...] Legal Insurrection and our own J.E. Dyer in the Greenroom. According to WaPo, the new congressional map under [...]
[...] like the latest example of the establishment fighting back against the Tea Party, according to Legal Insurrection. One Florida legislator, who happens to be working for the Mitt Romney campaign, “tried to [...]
[...] Legal Insurrection The establishment is fighting back, alright. [...]
[...] more Democrats within it … many more than other Republican incumbents.” The “inspiration” for this move is state representative Will Weatherford, who just so happens to be Mitt [...]
[...] more Democrats within it … many more than other Republican incumbents.” The “inspiration” for this move is state representative Will Weatherford, who just so happens to be Mitt [...]