Your daily jolt: Allen West rejects move to Ga. — ‘I’m not an NFL free agent’
U.S. Rep. Allen West continues to hold out hope that he can prevail with a recount in his coastal Florida race. But the Republican firebrand has ruled out a return to Georgia should he need to restart his political career.
My AJC colleague Daniel Malloy caught West in a Capitol hallway on Wednesday, and asked him about the invitation from Georgia GOP chairman Sue Everhart, who noted West’s Atlanta roots and said she hoped they would lead West to replant his standard here.
West wasn’t interested. “No,” the former lieutenant colonel replied. “Look, let me tell you something. I have moved my wife around for 20-some-odd years, being in the military, and she was also the daughter of a career military guy. When I retired, she chose Florida. That’s where my daughter’s in school, in college, my youngest daughter’s in high school. That’s our home. It’s a very nice thing, but I’m not an NFL free agent.”
***
Johnny Isakson took to the floor of the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, shortly after President Barack Obama’s first post-election conference, and noted that the White House had refused to draw a line in the sand when it came to how federal revenues ought to be raised in order to attack a $16 trillion deficit.
Couple that with House Speaker John Boehner’s willingness to talk increased revenue, and it’s time to deal, Isakson said. Here’s his 10-minute speech – it’s worth listening to:
Isakson even proffered his own idea for a solution. “Maybe the answer is means-tested deductions, which raises revenue without raising rates,” he said.
As for those who say jumping off the fiscal cliff in January wouldn’t be so bad: “I would, with all due respect, say that’s pretty stupid,” Isakson said.
***
U.S. Rep. John Barrow, D-Augusta, who just renewed a two-year lease on his own job, declared Wednesday that Nancy Pelosi’s decision to remain as House minority leader is a “missed opportunity” for Democrats.
He still doesn’t intend to vote for her.
“If the last election has taught us anything, it’s that the voters do not want politics as usual,” Barrow told my AJC colleague Daniel Malloy. “They want us to find ways to work together and sometimes I think that involves finding new people — the leadership to take up the new issue of finding common ground and working together.”
Barrow supported North Carolina Rep. Heath Shuler’s challenge to Pelosi two years ago, after the party was decimated in the 2010 elections. Shuler’s bid was easily quashed and Barrow ended up voting for Rep. John Lewis of Atlanta on the floor in protest. Barrow is not sure who he will vote for this time.
Rep. David Scott of Atlanta, meanwhile, applauded the decision.
“My whole point about Nancy is I think there is a greater value in the continuity of leadership at this time, whereas no matter who it was, if there was such a breakup and the leader goes, then you turn inward and you start having this other problem and it dissipates the focus that we have,” Scott said. “There’s such energy now. I think it’s a good thing and the American people agree with it. Leader Pelosi knows as well as I do and others that we’ve got to work together. We’ve got to avoid this cliff.”
***
The GSU Law School chapter of the American Constitution Society on Wednesday hosted a panel that looked at the upcoming session of the Legislature, attended by three Democratic lawmakers from DeKalb County. Yours truly was the moderator.
State Sen. Emanuel Jones reported that the city of Dunwoody would seek its own school system.
Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver predicted that a proposed “personhood” amendment to the state constitution, to give embryos full rights as human beings, might pass the Senate but would not make it to the House floor for a vote.
Sen. Jason Carter pointed to the vast uncertainty hanging over his chamber, where Republicans have yet to decide who will hold the positions of Senate president pro tem and majority leader. “We don’t even know who the rules chairman will be,” he said.
But the most popular figure at the hour-long session didn’t speak. He was Jason Carter’s cousin, James Earl Carter IV, who helped bring Mitt Romney’s “47 percent” video to light. The man has even got groupies.
***
We told you Wednesday that Marietta-based WellStar Health System had acquired one of the shattered remains of Newt Inc. It plans to reboot the bankrupt Center for Health Transformation.
But don’t think that this will help former House speaker Newt Gingrich address his think-tank’s multi-million dollar debt. According to my AJC colleague Scott Trubey, WellStar paid only $20,000 for what’s left of the concern that once was at the center of Gingrich’s empire.
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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89 comments Add your comment
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn'tcare,,,heeheehee
November 15th, 2012
1:28 pm
@RGB
November 15th, 2012
12:46 pm
Quote of the Day:
The African-American family survived 250 years
of slavery and 100 years of Jim Crow, but was
destroyed by 40 years of liberalism.
=========================================
WHITE families were racist slave owners for 250 years and
perpetrated Jim Crow for 100 years but are being DESTROYED
by LIBERALS.
heeheeheeheeheeheehee
RGB
November 15th, 2012
1:28 pm
Winner,
I’m truly happy for you and am very glad that you and your wife have college degrees. As an aside, I look forward to the day where we don’t need segregated universities that have special designations–don’t you?
I must admit I don’t encounter many people who are compelled to reveal the square footage of their dwellings as a means to establish their self worth or value. My view is that you should be free to live wherever you want in whatever you want–and that is not related to your worth as a human being. So would that mean that you are a better person than someone living in a 3,000 sf home–but worse than one living in a 7,500 sf home?
I’d like to see more African-Americans choose the private sector rather than government upon graduating because I think both they and the organizations for whom they work would benefit. In the long run, growth in government jobs is unsustainable and, as well all know, government doesn’t really produce anything.
Do you and your wife both work in the private sector?
Gerald
November 15th, 2012
1:28 pm
@cc:
You feeling that way is one thing. If I accused you falsely, I apologize. But Georgia primary voters are another. And it is the majority of such voters – not members of the minority like you – that make it impossible for an Allen West, Tim Scott, J.C. Watts etc. to get elected to this state. Sonny Perdue needed to run a “creative” absentee ballot operation to get Melvin Everson elected to the Georgia state house of representatives, and when Everson ran for a mid-level office, department of labor secretary I believe, he got crushed by a much lower profile politician. Absolutely crushed. Sorry, but the Georgia GOP needs more voters like you, and less like the ones who responded to the ugly baiting of Westmoreland (you know, the guy who called Obama “uppity”) during his runoff with Dylan Glenn. Had Dylan Glenn won that runoff, he could have gotten on the ticket with Mitt Romney and transformed the dynamics of the presidential race. But it appears that Georgia GOP primary voters would rather lose without something like that – and complain about it! – than win with it.
Gerald
November 15th, 2012
1:31 pm
RGB:
Most blacks do in fact work in the private sector after graduating from college. The “black government worker”thing is just something used by certain people to scare up votes. The vast majority of government workers in this state and country are white, and the stigma with working for the government didn’t exist before southern strategy type politics.
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn'tcare,,,heeheehee
November 15th, 2012
1:33 pm
@RGB
November 15th, 2012
1:07 pm
“I take ONE John Lewis OVER 100 of YOUR KIND.”
Already new that.
You folks WON!! YOU WON!!! You should be deliriously happy right now but rather your are uptight and vulgar. Why, pray tell? That’s right, I can say “pray”….
We have many more years of this to look forward to:
- Double traditional Unemployment
- Crushing debt that will greatly diminish social programs
- Declining social values (which means free contraceptives for everyone)
- Declining military coupled w/ greater threats to the U.S. (GREAT for the hate America first crowd!)
So why not just ENJOY the spoils you’ve attained since you’ve “worked” so hard for them.
Enjoy your success. You’ve earned it.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON………….. GET OVER IT.
heeheeheeheeheeheehee
Yes, you can say PRAY. But God is not listening to a HYPOCRITE
like YOU.
Sparta_Bubba
November 15th, 2012
1:38 pm
So RGB what is your point? Should the African-American family go back to Slavery or back to Jim Crow? It’s very easy to tell your political persuasion.
cc
November 15th, 2012
1:41 pm
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn’tcare,,,heeheehee@1:33 pm AKA Bernie and numerous other names):
Why don’t you give it a rest? The election was NOT about “winners” or “losers”, it was and is about the future of our country, our youth and Americans yet to be born. Let’s keep our eye on the ball, shall we?
yuzeyurbrane
November 15th, 2012
1:48 pm
cc–nice to hear you being so high-minded for a change
Don't Tread
November 15th, 2012
1:50 pm
Somehow I don’t believe means-tested deductions will see the light of day as that doesn’t go far enough for Democrats. They want “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need”.
you can't fix stupid or Democrats
November 15th, 2012
1:57 pm
Sorry, honey, I’m an atheist. We don’t have a hell.
No but God does!
Gerald
November 15th, 2012
2:07 pm
Don’t Tread:
So you are saying that this country was socialist before the George W. Bush tax cuts? Going back to Clinton era tax rates is socialism? Is that really what you are saying? Don’t you remember how unemployment was below 5% under Clinton? And how there was actually a budget surplus back then? That is socialism? I don’t have a dog in this hunt, but some of you Fox News/talk radio listeners need to read this David Frum column. (Frum is a neo-con who writes for the New York Post – owned by Rupert Murdoch – and the National Review.) http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/12/opinion/frum-conservatives-despair/index.html
jwc
November 15th, 2012
2:10 pm
Three words for this dude…… and STAY out!
Don't Tread
November 15th, 2012
2:40 pm
“Don’t you remember how unemployment was below 5% under Clinton?” Yeah, Y2K, dot-com and housing bubble. Let’s just reset the calendar to 9999 so we can recreate that.
“And how there was actually a budget surplus back then?” A budget surplus means nothing. The national debt still went up, which means there was an actual deficit. I suppose we should just make up stuff and not pay attention to what actual numbers are. (Sounds like Obamacare.)
Yes, this country had some socialist BS going on long before GWB showed up. Socialism’s great until you run out of other people’s money. I’d postpone that Greek vacation for awhile.
Allen West Rejects Big Post-Loss Offer | Political Ration
November 15th, 2012
2:53 pm
[...] Allen West (R-Fla.) on Wednesday turned down an offer from Georgia’s Republican Party chairwoman, Sue Everhart, who earlier this week urged the [...]
Allen West Rejects Big Post-Loss Offer | Political Ration
November 15th, 2012
2:53 pm
[...] Allen West (R-Fla.) on Wednesday turned down an offer from Georgia’s Republican Party chairwoman, Sue Everhart, who earlier this week urged the [...]
Porkchopicus of Borg
November 15th, 2012
3:07 pm
Don’t Tread — “A budget surplus means nothing. The national debt still went up, which means there was an actual deficit.”
Uh, no. There wasn’t. There was an actual surplus.
“I suppose we should just make up stuff and not pay attention to what actual numbers are.”
Here you go. Pay attention to what the actual numbers are.
http://www.cbo.gov/publication/42911
Open the document and go to Table F-1. Observe Columns L and N in the late 1990s. What happens to them?
The annual deficit turns into a surplus. And the total debt goes *down* for a few years.
Actual numbers, pesky facts.
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn'tcare
November 15th, 2012
3:20 pm
@cc
November 15th, 2012
1:41 pm
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn’tcare,,,heeheehee@1:33 pm AKA Bernie and numerous other names):
Why don’t you give it a rest? The election was NOT about “winners” or “losers”, it was and is about the future of our country, our youth and Americans yet to be born. Let’s keep our eye on the ball, shall we?
===========================================
It is INDEED about WINNERS AND LOSERS.
WE are the WINNDERS.
CONS are the LOSERS.
The country is better off because WE WON.
Myth Robme said that ‘YOU’, the 47% ARE THE TAKERS
and that he was not CONCERNED ABOUT “YOU”.
47% CONS should thank GOD that Romney lost.
I know that you CONS are SECRETLY glad OBAMA WON.
Although you would never ADMIT IT.
Gerald
November 15th, 2012
3:22 pm
Don’t Tread:
Actually, the economy heated up – and the deficit went down – under Clinton before the dot.com bubble and long before the housing bubble (which actually happened under Bush I might add … the housing run up started after 9/11). And Y2K had a negligible impact on the economy. You would have a case if economic growth began in like 1998 under Clinton, but it actually began in late 1993.
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn'tcare
November 15th, 2012
3:22 pm
@cc
November 15th, 2012
1:41 pm
———————————————————
CORRECTION:
WE are the WINNERS.
heeheeheeheehee
You don't say
November 15th, 2012
3:42 pm
cc must stand for “Crying Conservative”……
That is all she does on the AJC blogs. Was doing it before the election and it has only gotten worse with that ECV “beat down” that was administered last week.
From Pine View Farm » Blog's archive » Georgia Dodges a Bullet
November 15th, 2012
3:42 pm
[...] can relax. The degree of public insanity will remain unchanged. U.S. Rep. Allen West continues to hold out hope that he can prevail with a recount in his coastal Fl… November 15, 2012 | Posted by: Frank | Posted in: Wingnuttery | Bookmark this post The [...]
clem
November 15th, 2012
3:45 pm
graves joins price on sideline
Don't Tread
November 15th, 2012
3:45 pm
“Debt held by the public” is only a part of the national debt. Try again.
Here’s a formula: Debt held by the public + Intragovernmental Holdings = total debt
No amount of “accounting creativity” (which would land you in jail if you were a private company attempting such) can change the fact that total debt went up every year. Total debt rising = no surplus.
Porkchopicus of Borg
November 15th, 2012
3:58 pm
“Debt held by the public” is only a part of the national debt. Try again.
Take it up with the CBO. They deal directly with the agencies that spend and receive money; Treasury is much more strategic than tactical, and much less on point. Ask them; they’ll tell you so.
I don’t know what you think you know about business, but P&L statements and SEC filings are a lot more similar to what the CBO puts out than to what Treasury puts out.
So *you* try again.
Allen West Rejects Move to Georgia — ‘I’m Not an NFL Free Agent’ | The Rightnewz
November 15th, 2012
4:25 pm
[...] ajc.com U.S. Rep. Allen West continues to hold out hope that he can prevail with a recount in his coastal Florida race. But the Republican firebrand has ruled out a return to Georgia should he need to restart his political career. [...]
Allen West rejects GOP offer to run in Georgia | theGrio
November 15th, 2012
5:06 pm
[...] an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, West addressed Everhart’s offer, he said, “Look, let me tell you something. I have [...]
RCB
November 15th, 2012
5:27 pm
Obamacare Beat Out…..RCB and RGB are 2 different people. Don’t call me out in your rant to RGB.
you can't fix stupid or Democrats
November 15th, 2012
7:43 pm
29,000 have signed the Petition to leave this union!
gvsadfsd
November 15th, 2012
9:16 pm
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Big Hat
November 15th, 2012
9:28 pm
To X-Rep. Allen West: Ooogah boogah ungahwah juju, Simba!
S
November 15th, 2012
10:05 pm
West! Don’t we have enough fruitcake Republican’s in this state. What kind of fool would even ask a menace like that to our state.
Obamacare Beat Out Romneydidn'tcare
November 15th, 2012
11:01 pm
@Big Hat
November 15th, 2012
9:28 pm
To X-Rep. Allen West: Ooogah boogah ungahwah juju, Simba!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
heeheeheeheheeheeheeheeheehee
That is funnnnny!!!!!
Allen West Rejects Offer To Restart Political Career In Georgia: ‘I’m Not An NFL Free Agent’ « The Fifth Column
November 16th, 2012
7:02 am
[...] Allen West (R-Fla.) on Wednesday turned down an offer from Georgia’s Republican Party chairwoman, Sue Everhart, who earlier this week urged the [...]
Allen West Rejects Offer To Restart Political Career In Georgia: ‘I’m Not An NFL Free Agent’ « The Fifth Column
November 16th, 2012
7:02 am
[...] Allen West (R-Fla.) on Wednesday turned down an offer from Georgia’s Republican Party chairwoman, Sue Everhart, who earlier this week urged the [...]
Edmund Ruffin
November 16th, 2012
7:26 am
It would unbelievably raise the IQ of the Atlanta area if we could swap out John Lewis for Allen West.
The Winner and STILL the President ...
November 16th, 2012
9:00 am
@RGB: Sorry for this delayed response. I was traveling yesterday and had to get on a plane. To answer your questions/thoughts, I mentioned the size of our home to dispell the myth held by many of your ilk that we (African Americans) all live in slums waiting for our “gifts” from the government.
And as a matter of fact, my wife and I both work for the “government.” She’s a public school teacher and I am a county administrator (though I have worked in the public, private and non-profit sectors). But your premise that “government doesn’t produce anything” is another falsehood constantly preached by neo-cons. During my wife’s 20+ years in education she has helped “produce” hundreds of college graduates who are now “producers” in our economy. While I admit that I am merely a paper pusher, I assist in getting contracts produced, signed and implemented so that services can be delivered and vendors can get paid. This too “produces” a benefit to our economy and our society.
I’m back in the office today so I don’t have time to contribute more to the conversation here. But I will leave you with a boxing reference:
“Ladies and gentlemen! All of the news networks (INCLUDING Fox News) stopped the election at 11:15 p.m. EST, for the WINNER by Electoral College knockout … and STILL President of the United States of Americaaaaaaaa, Barack Hussein Ooooooooobaaaaaaammaaaaaa!”
liberalefty
November 16th, 2012
9:06 am
ALLEN WEST the gop’s resident bootlicker…
liberalefty
November 16th, 2012
9:15 am
the only thing black conservatives are good for is to make white racists feel good about their racism….they were highly valued when OBAMA got elected but since OBAMA won again theyre useless to the racist gop…when the gop calls OBAMA racist degrading names theyre talking about ALL black people, including the bootlicking black conservatives…
Allen West Rejects Offer To Restart Political Career In Georgia: ‘I’m Not An NFL Free Agent’ | The AC Green Show
November 16th, 2012
11:47 am
[...] Allen West (R-Fla.) on Wednesday turned down an offer from Georgia’s Republican Party chairwoman, Sue Everhart, who earlier this week urged the [...]