Former Congressman Allen West (R-Fl.) had some harsh words for America's media Monday.
Appearing on Fox News's On the Record, West said, "I think that we cannot continue to go on believing that all we can do is ask the President what his favorite color is and continue to have these softball interviews" (video follows with transcript and commentary):
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST: The 61st annual national prayer breakfast, one speaker getting even more media attention than President Obama. Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Carson giving his Biblical interpretation of taxes and healthcare.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOCTOR BENJAMIN CARSON: We spend a lot of money for healthcare, twice as much per capita as anybody else in the world. And yet, not very efficient…You make 10 billion dollars you put in a billion. You make $10 you put in one - of course got to get rid of the loopholes. But now, now some people say, they say well, that's not fair because it doesn't hurt the guy who made 10 billion dollars as much as the guy who made 10. Where does it say you have to hurt the guy? He just put a billion dollars in the pot. You know, we don't need to hurt him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAN SUSTEREN: Was Dr. Carson’s speech inappropriate based on the location and the timing? Former Congressman Allen West joins us. Good evening sir.
FORMER CONGRESSMAN ALLEN WEST (R-FLORIDA): Good evening, how are you doing, Greta?
VAN SUSTEREN: Very well. And as you may have noticed that Dr. Carson is a world famous neurosurgeon making those comments caused somewhat of a controversy among some because they were made at the prayer breakfast. Your thoughts on that, sir?
WEST: Well, I don't think it should cause any controversy whatsoever. I thought that we lived in an America where you could have freedom of speech. And I believe that the doctor gave his assessment of some of the policies that involve his profession, the healthcare profession, and also talking about the culture and the relationship of government to the individual. Now I think what has everyone upset is that he violated the unwritten rule of being an African-American male and he criticized the policies of President Obama which I can somewhat understand having been on the other side of a lot of attacks as well.
But, if you go back to September of 2012, there was the Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Emanuel Cleaver, who gave an incredible statement saying that if anyone else were in the White House other than President Obama, that they would be marching on the White House. And that the President Obama knows that he is given a deference that would not be given to a white president. And we were talking about the incredible 14 percent unemployment rate in the black community. And I think that we cannot continue to go on believing that all we can do is ask the President what his favorite color is and continue to have these softball interviews. We have to start talking about the policies that are failing this country, and I think Dr. Carson, hat-tip to him for having that platform, be able to challenge those policies.
VAN SUSTEREN: What do you think President Obama thought sitting there?
WEST: Well, I think he felt for the first time someone has stood up to me because pretty much he's been given a free pass. Just recently we saw in that 60 Minutes interview. So, it has become rather Pavlovian if you continue to reward this type of behavior and these type of failing policies without any type of challenge that comes from the media. And furthermore, when you see him going out and about, he continues to be placed in front of, you know, the fawning audiences that just clap and they become campaign rallies more than anything else. So I believe that it is time that we have to start standing up and challenging the President, and let’s see what happens tomorrow night with the State of the Union address.
It may be time, but it's not going to happen.
Conservatives can wish for the news media to start doing its job, but it should be very clear that they have no intention of doing so.
Their goal now is to do whatever they can to assist the Democrats in taking back the House of Representatives during next year's midterm elections so that Obama will be able to enact whatever he - and they! - want in his final two years in office.
Can't on it!
