Rep. Allen West (R-FL), the Tea Party favorite and one of only two African-American Republicans in Congress, closed out an address to local Republicans by solemnly invoking the name of a Confederate general, Stonewall Jackson, at a county GOP’s Lincoln Day Dinner.
West spoke on Saturday to the Broward County GOP dinner, as something of a farewell address — he is switching to a nearby district, after his own was redrawn in a manner that made it more Democratic. During his address, West denounced liberals and progressives for wanting to “enslave” Americans into dependency on government programs, such as food stamps.
At the end of the speech, West invoked the name of the famous Confederate military officer: “So, as I close tonight, I want to remind you of the great farewell speech of Confederate General Thomas J. ‘Stonewall’ Jackson — when he bid farewell to his brigade, as he was elevated by Robert E. Lee.
“And he said to his brigade that they would always be first in his heart. Broward County will always be first in my heart, and I will never forget you. God bless you all, and God keep you. Thank you.”
