Where is the Outrage Against Allen West?

If you were on twitter or followed the news at all yesterday, you probably got a heavy dose of the Hilary Rosen/Ann Romney controversy. Hilary Rosen in an interview on CNN said Ann Romney “has actually never worked a day in her life. She’s never dealt with the kinds of economic issues that a majority of the women in this country are facing in terms of how do we feed our kids, how do we send them to school and how do we-why we worry about their future.” She was roundly criticized for those comments. Everyone from First Lady Michelle Obama to President Obama’s campaign manager Jim Messina spoke out against those comments.

            Meanwhile, a sitting Republican Congressman, Allen West issues an outrageous statement that 78 to 81 Democrats are communists and no Republican has the guts to repudiate him? Since when did Republican leaders become so spineless? Since when did they become tongue-tied when it came time to criticize one of their own? Where is Gov. Mitt Romney in all of this? He is running to be the President of the United States but he’s also running to be the leader of his Party. He should start acting like it. He ought to begin to try to reshape the image of his party, what it stands for, what he as the leader will and won’t tolerate.  But for whatever reason, he doesn’t appear to be politically nimble. He doesn’t seem to have the keen political instinct to recognize and take advantage of a political opportunity as it arises. He is too cautious and calculating. There are moments when a political leader shouldn't remain silent. One of those moments was when Rush Limbaugh called Sandra Fluke a “slut” and Gov. Romney failed to repond forcefully. In the case of Allen West, he is yet again letting another opportunity slip away. It doesn’t mean you swing at every pitch, but when one comes right down the middle, you go after it without hesitation and hit it out of the ballpark. Rep. Allen West’s deplorable statement is one of those moments, and it’s not too late for Gov. Romney to speak out.

Romney vs. Obama: Let the General Election Begin

When the President of the United States starts attacking a Republican presidential candidate by name, you know the general election is on. It’s safe to say the Republican presidential nomination is all but over and Gov. Mitt Romney will likely emerge as the nominee. All that talk of a brokered convention should be put to rest. On Tuesday, April 3, in a speech at the Associated Press Luncheon, President Obama delivered a very scathing attack against Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget and tried to tie Gov. Romney to the plan. “It is a Trojan horse…an attempt to impose a radical vision on our country…thinly-veiled Social Darwinism…antithetical to our entire history,” President Obama said. But what’s the president’s alternative? All we hear about is taxing the rich (“Buffet Rule”), wanting them to pay their “fair share” in the name of “shared sacrifice.” This is simply a talking point designed to energize the Democratic base, and not a serious plan for the future. It is framed as though the 1% is partly responsible for the country’s problems. Like they made their money on the backs of everyone else, and if we only made them pay their “fair share,” things will get better. It’s an intellectually dishonest proposition. Every time there is a fiscal crisis in America, the knee-jerk Democratic response shouldn’t be tax hikes on the wealthy. By the same token, Republicans shouldn’t think tax cuts alone should be the be-all and end-all. In order to deal with the country's biggest challenges, both Parties will have to give up some of their sacred cows. Republicans have to be more open to defense cuts, and Democrats have to acknowledge that entitlement programs need reform.

That brings me to Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget proposal. His budget plan is a political document. It represents the conservative vision for how to deal with America’s fiscal crisis. But, it is also a substantive plan. It cuts domestic spending, reforms Medicare and simplifies the tax code. Rep. Ryan deserves a lot of credit for his courage in seeking to tackle the national debt and reforming entitlements. His plan may or may not be a good plan, it may or may not be perfect, but it’s still a plan. It advances the debate on what should be done about the debt. Democrats should come up with their own comprehensive plan and hopefully both Parties will meet in the middle. Paul Ryan's plan has become the de facto Republican plan.

Republicans have coalesced around it. This is a problem for Gov. Romney because no one seems to be talking about his plan. Republicans and even the media talk more about Rep. Ryan’s budget than they do Gov. Romney’s economic plan. Yet Gov. Romney is the one running to be the leader of his party. His economic plan is being overshadowed by that of Rep. Paul Ryan. For that reason, Rep. Paul Ryan isn’t the best VP choice for Mitt Romney. It’ll force Gov. Romney to not only embrace the Ryan budget wholeheartedly but champion it as what he may adopt on day one of his presidency. That’ll make Mitt Romney look like a follower and not a leader. It’ll make it seem like Rep. Ryan is the one in charge and calling the shots. Gov. Romney should find a way to talk about his economic plan and vision in a way that is equally as appealing to rank and file Republicans as the Ryan budget. When he does, more Republicans will follow him.