We noted earlier today that Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL) had changed his mind about appointing far-right talk show host Joyce Kaufman as his new Chief of Staff. She had courted controversy earlier by calling for violence against the tyranny of the Obama administration, especially if Tea Partiers fell short in the November election. And yesterday she called Speaker Pelosi “garbage”.
But it looks like there might be more to the story.
You may have heard that schools around Broward County, along with some libraries and Post Office’s, were put on lockdown for several hours yesterday. It now appears that the threat that forced the lockdown came from someone inspired by Kaufman’s threats against the government or angry at the press criticism she’d received earlier in the week. It was shortly after the police investigation suggested this connection that Kaufman was out as West’s new Chief of Staff.
Eric Kleefeld has the whole story.
I was walking back from a business meeting today in mid-town when I saw Rep. Charlie Rangel (D) on a float/truck for Korean War era vets in the Veterans Day parade. After they were done with the route and were getting off I asked him what his position was on the Hoyer-Clyburn race …
TPM Reader CW is feeling a bit chippy today:
A prominent administration official appears to soften on a key issue. The base gets worked up, but the White House quickly pushes back, insisting its position hasn’t changed. Oh, how I wish I could believe that.
The chief of staff for a Democratic senator writes in regarding Axelrod’s seeming willingness to forgo a permanent extension of the Bush middle class tax cuts:
It’s hard to know what to make of David Axelrod’s tax policy comments to the Huffington Post, and Dan Pfeiffer’s subsequent denial, other than maybe it was a trial balloon that got shot down, or maybe Axelrod went further than he was authorized to go.
In any event, the White House and the Democratic congressional leadership made a terrible political mistake by avoiding a fight with the Republicans on this issue before the election, when it could have clearly demonstrated the hypocrisy of the GOP’s constant harping about deficits, as well as their most critical concern: the “plight” of the poor rich people.
The staffing arrangement for the Bowles-Simpson fiscal commission is, um, shall we say, unorthodox.
It’s going to be fun to watch the compromises that the new tea partiers in Congress are going to have to make. Make that “compromises.” Today Rep. Allen West (R-FL) announced “with deep regret” that local radio host Joyce Kaufman — who’s incendiary statements included calling Nancy Pelosi “garbage” — will not serve as his chief of staff after all.
For her part, Kaufman told her radio audience that the controversy is an “electronic lynching by proxy.” West is African American.
Politico and NBC News announce they’ll be co-hosting the first GOP presidential debate next spring at the Reagan Library.
Rather the getting credit for the GOP’s historic midterm sweep, Michael Steele finds himself leading a party that may finally be strong enough to ditch him.
The big political kerfuffle of the morning is actually a substantive one with long-term consequences. In an interview last night with Huffington Post, David Axelrod appeared to concede that Democrats would probably not be able to extend the Bush tax cuts permanently for middle class but would instead have to extend both the middle class cuts and the high-income cuts on a temporary basis.
“We have to deal with the world as we find it,” Axelrod said. “The world of what it takes to get this done.”
The White House is pushing back hard against HuffPo’s rendering of what Axelrod said, but as Brian Beutler notes, there’s not really another plausible reading of Axelrod’s remarks.
Via ABC: “Sen. Conrad: Extend All Tax Cuts; Time to Get ‘Serious’ About Deficit”