Posted on Friday, November 23, 2012 - 05:45 am:

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After the Election: What Lies Ahead? Part 2
David Horowitz's Restoration Weekend 2012 at the Breakers, Palm Beach, Florida
November 15th - 18th, 2012

Speakers: Congressman Allen West and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann

Release date - Nov 22, 2012
Runtime - 27:19

Video link: http://blip.tv/davidhorowitztv/after-the-election- what-lies-ahead-part-2-6450714

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Posted on Friday, November 23, 2012 - 08:35 am:

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WEST: Counting Blessings Despite Election Bruises
Land of the Free Will Endure

By Rep. Allen B. West, Nov 22, 2012

This week, most Americans from sea to shining sea will gather for a special meal. Thanksgiving Day is when all of us, regardless of who we are or our origins, can take a moment to reflect on the bounty that is ours as citizens of these United States.

It is appropriate to take these moments of grateful reflection, even during moments of disappointment. Serving my constituents in the House of Representatives has been one of the highest honors of my life. I am thankful to have had that opportunity but disappointed it will not continue.

...America is still a country like no other on Earth. More than two centuries ago, our Founders created a nation where an individual’s station in life was not determined by birthright, but by his own efforts and dreams. Even citizenship was not a matter of heritage or place of birth. All that is required is a pledge to support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America.

It is this Constitution that forms the basis of our American exceptionalism. It is the framework that allows each of us to pursue our dreams, to succeed, to make mistakes, to overcome them and rise even higher.

...In the United States, we are blessed with the freedom to pursue our dreams and to disagree on what they should be — loudly and passionately if we wish — but we must never, ever relinquish this freedom, whether it is in the name of political correctness or economic justice.

...It is my deepest hope, that as the citizens of this nation sit around their tables, they will be thankful to be Americans, where individual sovereignty and freedom to succeed is not granted by government agencies or officials, cannot be taken away in the name of fairness, but is imbedded in the Constitution, with liberty and justice for all.

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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2012 - 06:46 pm:

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West Weekly Wrap-Up 12/02/2012

Dear Patriot,

Greetings to our constituents, fellow Floridians, and indeed all Americans, it is time to prepare our weekly update for dissemination.

While I enjoyed watching Georgia and Alabama battle it out for victory in the SEC Championship, the great contest in which our nation is engaged to ensure wealth expansion and economic growth remains part of the American way of life was never far from my mind. It seems this Administration has made its position very clear. Despite all historical economic evidence, the President and his Administration refuse to acknowledge that greater revenues are indeed derived from lower tax rates, and fewer deductions and exemptions rather than the opposite.

What’s more, the President appears to believe his policies have not contributed in any way to the economic mess in which we find ourselves – which is even more astounding considering his Administration is now demanding complete and permanent authority to increase the debt limit. Where will this end?

Sadly, this brings to mind another president, Mohammed Morsi, who just recently decided he also needed much broader powers, and had the Egyptian constitution rewritten in 16 hours in the middle of the night. Only weeks ago, the Obama Administration was praising Mr. Morsi.

Meanwhile, back at the “fiscal cliff,” President Obama wants $1.6 trillion in more taxes, $50 billion more in stimulus spending, continued extension of the 99-week unemployment benefits – to the tune of about $30 billion per year -- maintaining the payroll tax cut, which has led to Social Security running a deficit and which even the AARP opposes, and has said we can talk about spending cuts later. And when exactly would that be?

I wonder how many Americans have heard the simple maxim: “Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.”

I also wonder how many Americans truly believe President Obama has any intention of rectifying our fiscal issues? We are indeed heading to that 53% growth in the federal government and more expansion of the welfare-state, which is exactly what his Fiscal Year 2013 budget laid out.

There is no plan to reduce our debt or deficit, just more spending. America is truly moving away from an opportunity society to a dependency society. That means more votes for those in power who will provide, as de Tocqueville stated, the largesse from the public treasury.

I want to share with you three quotes that I certainly wish this Administration would read:

1. “The first object of taxation is to secure revenue. When the taxation of large incomes is approached with this view, the problem is to find a rate which will produce the largest returns. Experience does not show that the higher rate produces the larger revenue…

I agree perfectly with those who wish to relieve the small taxpayer by getting the largest possible contribution from the people with large incomes. But if the rates on the large incomes are so high that they disappear, the small taxpayer will be left to bear the entire burden”. - President Calvin Coolidge…who lowered tax rates and increased revenue.

2. “Taxation may be so high as to defeat its object, that given sufficient time to gather the fruits, a reduction of taxation will run a better chance, than an increase, of balancing the budget”. – John Maynard Keynes, 1933

3. “It is a paradoxical truth that tax rates are too high today and tax revenues are too low and the soundest way to raise the revenues in the long run is to cut the rates now. Efforts to avoid tax liabilities make certain types of less productive activity more profitable than other more valuable undertakings and this inhibits our growth and efficiency. The purpose of cutting taxes is to achieve the more prosperous, expanding economy”. –President John F Kennedy, during his January 1963 address to Congress

It was George Santayana who stated in the 1920s, “those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Sadly, I fear we are on a bullet train to repeat the economic failures of the past.

In closing, I want to put the events at the United Nations this week in some sort of context. Since 9-11 2012, has anyone paid attention to the deteriorating situation in the Middle East? It is a Middle East where, according to President Obama’s foreign policy, we are “pivoting away.”

Since November, we have seen Israel come under horrific attack from Hamas in Gaza, who is being supplied from Iran. We have had Egypt go 180 degrees away from any semblance of an “Arab Spring” of democracy to a radical Islamist regime led by the Muslim Brotherhood. Lastly, by a vote of 138-9, with 41 abstentions (which are in effect tacit yes votes), we now have a “Palestinian” non-member observer state recognized by the United Nations -- coming after Israel was rocketed with not a peep of protest from Mahmoud Abbas.

Palestine is a territory which historically had nothing to do with Arab people. In fact, it was Roman Emperor Hadrian who renamed the region Palestinia from Judea to punish the Jews after their defeat in the second Jewish insurrection against Rome. The original word Palestinia comes from the root word Philistia and the ancient Philistines were originally Greek.

After decades of good propaganda and a lack of historical understanding on the part of many, the United Nations has created something which has no historical basis. What is most disturbing is a terrorist organization, which is attacking a sovereign State, has now been awarded legitimacy.

Are any of these events a result of the President beginning his second term or is it all just a strange coincidence?

Steadfast and Loyal,

Allen B. West

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Posted on Friday, December 07, 2012 - 03:32 pm:

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West Weekly Wrap-Up 12/07/2012

Dear Patriot,

Greetings to our constituents, fellow Floridians, and indeed all Americans, it is time to prepare our weekly update for dissemination.

Today is the 71st Anniversary of the attack on US Naval Base, Pearl Harbor which truly marked our entry into World War II. I can still remember my dad sharing with me his feeling when he heard about this attack on the radio. Of course, he would go forth and serve in the US Army during World War II in the European Theater of Operations (ETO).

Little did my dad realize at the time, that he was beginning a legacy of service to our nation that has now spanned four generations. My dad was a member of that “Greatest Generation” and today his grandson, my nephew, carries that honor to this day.

As with the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, America has, and always will, produce the caliber of men and women who stand as guardians for our nation’s honor. These are men and women who have answered the call then and continue to do so now.

Tomorrow many in our nation will watch the next generation of these men and women as “America’s Football Game” takes place, Army vs. Navy. I wonder how many of these young men and women have relatives who were at Pearl Harbor, or served in World War II?

I am proud to know that my own godson, Midshipman John Melvin Hendricks (that rascal who joined the Navy) will be taking that field tomorrow, his second year.

So as we remember Pearl Harbor today, let us never forget those who will stand and answer the call to arms to protect this Republic, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

And in speaking of those who serve, I was angered by the developments this week surrounding Army Major Nidal Hasan who three years ago shot 43 soldiers and Department of the Army Civilians, killing 13. An Army appellate court decision removed the current assigned judge from the case citing that he was not impartial. Furthermore, the court backed the assertion that Major Hasan did not have to be forced to shave his beard.

It just appears again that we are placating and playing the game of political correctness. It is horrific enough that we have classified this terrorist attack as “work place violence” but consider the continued disappointment of those who lost loved ones on that day… for them, it will always be a day which shall live in infamy.

This week we voted in the House of Representatives to remove the word “lunatic” from federal law. However, that does not mean there isn't plenty of lunacy going on in the workings of the federal government!

Further, I find it interesting when media pundits and talking heads ask the disturbing question, “What will America do if Bashar al-Asad uses chemical weapons in his people?” I would have hoped it would never get to the point of his feeling empowered to use those weapons. It just seems we continue to take a defensive posture reacting to events.

If we had done as military generals on the ground had suggested in Iraq and retained a viable and credible military presence in the region, we could have precluded this. Instead we now have Iran transiting across Iraq to support Asad… and continuing to support terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad.

The Obama Administration was in such a rush to demand former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak step down. Why not the same vigor when it comes to Mohammed Morsi?

I also recall the Obama Administration supporting a Marxist/Socialist President in Honduras and not supporting the movement in Iran against Mahmoud Ahmandinejad.

Confusing? Just imagine what our allies are thinking.

And what happened in Benghazi? America must never stop asking that question, regardless of what the mainstream media wants to hide. Losing an Ambassador, a Foreign Service officer, and two former US Navy SEALS must never EVER become the new normal.

Today, we received the monthly jobs report for November, with 7.7% unemployment and 146,000 jobs created. On the surface it is good news. However, one step beyond the superficial, we realize this is still an economy limping along.

First, the previous job creation numbers from the months of September and October were revised downward by 50,000 respectively. Second, the unemployment rate dropped due to another 350,000 Americans dropping out of the labor force. This means we still have a labor force participation rate hovering at 63.6%, which has and continues to be a record low. At this rate, we could theoretically achieve an unemployment rate of zero if everyone just quit working altogether.

Finally, our U6 computation rate remains dangerously high, due not only to 12 million unemployed Americans, but also a little over 8 million underemployed Americans.

Combined with a fragile economy where the US Federal Reserve is printing money in order to cover a monthly $40 billion mortgage debt, America is hardly out of the woods.

These simple facts just reinforce the need to have sound fiscal, tax, and regulatory policy -- not politics -- that will incentivize economic growth and wealth expansion. The last thing the private sector and job creators need worry about is more confiscatory economics masquerading as viable solutions to a serious fiscal problem.

Washington DC spends too much, and sending this Administration more American taxpayer dollars is not the answer. It is mathematically impossible to tax “the rich” enough to make a dent in our debt. We must be talking about where to reduce spending first. And why is it that only taxpayers, not the federal government, are expected to “share the burden?”

This is my final weekly update from our Congressional office, but it is by no means my final weekly update... When one door closes, another opens and we shall continue to advocate for truth, the restoration of this Republic, and promote Constitutional conservative principles in the New Year.

It has been my honor to serve as the Representative of the People of Florida’s 22nd Congressional District. The fight for our Constitutional Republic has truly begun and I will be on the frontline.

May everyone have a wonderful holiday season and may God bless the United States of America.

Steadfast and Loyal,

Allen B. West

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