Allen West and his silly decision
11/11/2010
There is a lot of chatter out there about the silly decision Republican Congressman-elect Allen West made when he hired flamethrowing radio talk show host Joyce Kaufman to be his chief of staff.
It really is an astounding decision, one that suggests a complete misunderstanding about what happens inside a congressional office.
While Kaufman likes to talk about taking to the mountains and using violence to usurp the government (see video in earlier post), she ain't seen nothing like a angry constituent whose Social Security check is late.
By picking Kaufman, West has already damaged his reputation on Capitol Hill. Most of the folks working in those congressional offices work hard, put in long hours and do the drudge work. They are serious folks who often believe deeply in the ideals of their party - whether it is Republican or Democrat.
But few of them would publicly call Nancy Pelosi "garbage' as Kaufman has done. And none would call for the violent overthrow of the government just because they lost an election.
They also know that while the two parties may have difficulty finding common ground on some major issues - much of the legislation that is passed is done through compromise.
The professional staff on Capitol Hill are surely rolling their eyes at Kaufman. If they don't take her seriously that is not going to help West be an effective congressman representing Palm Beach and Broward Counties.
Adding to the oddity of West's selection is the fact that Kaufman plans to continue her radio show.
That should be interesting.
What did Tom Lewis, Harry Johnston, Mark Foley and Ron Klein have in common? They all served in the Florida Legislature before being elected to Congress.
One might argue that “career politicians” are to blame for our nation’s woes. But I argue that serving in the U.S. Congress is like playing in the major leagues—you need some experience at a lower level of government first. (Clay Shaw didn’t serve in the legislature, but he was mayor of Fort Lauderdale, which meant he was also a seasoned public servant before going to Congress.)
Allen West is likely to make plenty more bone-head mistakes because he’s never had the experience of dealing with constituents. There is something to be said for working your way up.
Posted by: Larry Lipman | 11/12/2010 at 10:55 AM