COMMENTARY | Rep. Allen West, R-Fla., is not afraid to say what he thinks, even when the ideas are unpopular. The shocking comments West made about Communists in Congress earlier this month caused the NAACP to give the conservative statesmen the cold shoulder. West was scheduled to be the keynote speaker for the organization's annual fundraiser last week but was uninvited, according to ABC News.
Even amid the massive amount of controversy about the supposed link between Democratic Party members and Communists, West stuck to his statements. West said he is not afraid to call "a spade a spade" and will not back down. A politician willing to risk his reputation for a cause is a rarity. West should be commended for stating what he believes and sticking by those remarks regardless of the outcome.
During a "Fox and Friends" interview this week, West shared his feelings on the Muslim Brotherhood. West believes political correctness is running amok in the FBI and places national security at risk. The duty to protect Americans should trump liberal fears over a few hurt feelings.
Investigators can be blunt without crossing the line into biased or racist behavior. West discussed the "cultural suicide" that can occur if blanket tolerance is favored over the reasonable investigation of evidence. His astute observations about the importance of American safety should cause even progressives to re-examine how FBI agents are trained to identify potential terrorists.
West's ideological battle with Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., over 900 pages of FBI training materials illustrates the warped perspective of politically correct zealots. According to The Blaze, Durbin wants any reference that could cause FBI agents to assume American Muslims could be members of an extremist group removed from the manual.
FBI agents are intelligent and diligently trained. It is ridiculous to assume they would target all Muslims as terrorists. The religious beliefs of an individual are but one of many facets an agent would use to create a suspect profile.
Tara Dodrill is a political, eco-green and travel writer. She is a former elected official and has worked as a newspaper journalist, editor and photographer.
