NAACP ousts Allen West after 'Communist' quip

A Florida chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has uninvited Rep. Allen West (R-FL) from speaking at an event after he insisted that up to 81 Democratic members of Congress were secretly members of the Communist Party.

The Martin County NAACP had invited West to speak at the Tuesday Freedom Fund Banquet but canceled at the last minute and said he would not be invited when the event is rescheduled for Sept. 15.

"There's a certain statement he made about Communists," Martin County NAACP President Jerry Gore told Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers, adding that West's campaign said it "understood" why his speech was canceled.

At a campaign event earlier this month, West had warned that Democrats in the Congressional Progressive Caucus were actually Communist Party members.

"I believe there's about 78 to 81 members of the Democrat Party who are members of the Communist Party," West said. "It's called the Congressional Progressive Caucus."

But when pressed by CNN's Soledad O'Brien last week, the tea party darling refused to name names.

“Start naming the 78 to 81,” O’Brien asked West.

“We don’t have to,” West said.

“We do,” O’Brien insisted.

“You can go look at the Congressional Progressive Caucus,” West replied. “Then you’ve got the names.”

“[Minnesota Rep.] Keith Ellison is a Communist?” O’Brien wondered. “[Wisconsin Rep.] Tammy Baldwin is a Communist? [California Rep.] Judy Chu is a Communist?”

“You can call it whatever you want,” West answered. “I’m calling it this: Communist, progressive, Marxist, socialist, statist — which is another term that’s been used. I’m looking at the ideologies."

(h/t: The Huffington Post)