Allen West, chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, reacted to the Supreme Court’s decision to toss out Ken Paxton’s lawsuit to overturn the election outcomes in the states of Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, and Michigan by proposing that Texas and like-minded states secede from the Union.
Austin, TX, Release: December 11, 2020. For Immediate Release
Below is Chairman Allen West’s statement regarding the decision by the Supreme Court to dismiss Texas’ constitutionally legitimate and critical lawsuit.
“The Supreme Court, in tossing the Texas lawsuit that was joined by seventeen states and 106 US congressman, has decreed that a state can take unconstitutional actions and violate its own election law. Resulting in damaging effects on other states that abide by the law, while the guilty state suffers no consequences. This decision establishes a precedent that says states can violate the US constitution and not be held accountable. This decision will have far-reaching ramifications for the future of our constitutional republic. Perhaps law-abiding states should bond together and form a Union of states that will abide by the constitution.”
The Texas GOP will always stand for the Constitution and for the rule of law even while others don’t.
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What a wacko proposal. Add to that West’s unintelligible interpretation of the US Constitution.
Although the constitution does not mention anything about states seceding, the 1868 decision by the Supreme Court in Texas v. White made it quite clear that Texas is precluded from seceding.
The Supreme Court ruled in Texas v. White that Texas could not secede from the Union. Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase wrote: “When Texas became one of the United States, she entered into an indissoluble relation. The union between Texas and the other States was as complete, as perpetual and as indissoluble as the union between the original States. There was no place for reconsideration or revocation, except through revolution or through consent of the States.”
In other words, Texas would have to revolt against the US or have the consent of the other states in order to secede. A revolution would be put down quickly by the armed forces of the US, and the states are not about to let Texas secede.
But let’s say that Texas could secede. If it did so, it would exist as a prosperous nation with its diversified agronomy, a growing tech industry and a petro-chemical industry that neither Joe Biden nor Kamala Harris could dismantle. However, as an independent nation, Texas would have little standing diplomatically and militarily. And the same is true for a confederation of Texas and like-minded states, but such a confederation would diminish the standing of the US among the world’s nations.
AOC refers to such a confederation as “A confederacy of dunces.” While I have strongly disagreed with everything the socialist congresswoman has said, in this instance I think AOC has hit the nail squarely on its head.
Texas escaped a blue wave in the 2020 presidential election. Fortunately the hatred for Trump was not enough to turn Texas into a Democratic stronghold. But unless the Texas GOP gets its act together we might not be as fortunate in 2024.
The Texas GOP needs a leader who does not come up with a wacko proposal like seceding from the Union. I strongly suspect that the vast majority of Texans are opposed to Allen West’s proposal.
The Texas Republican Party needs to advocate proposals that will appeal to the majority of Texans. Allen West does not appear to be the leader who will do that.
Howie,
You’re a defeatist. Oh well, yeah, I agree that the Dems cheated in the Dominion states, but it’s really too late to do anything about it this time, so let’s just move on and come together, and we’ll get ’em next time. Sorry, but no. Did the Texians give up after the Alamo was overrun? Did the Texians give up after Goliad? After Fannin’s POW’s were slaughtered? No no they did not. They steeled their resolve to fight on, to claim the liberty that they were entitled to.
We should do no less. I guess you missed the results of the Michigan voting machine inspection. Results: they did indeed find that the Dominion machines were rigged….just like whistleblowers have been saying all along. If they were rigged in Michigan, is it within the realm of possibility that they were rigged in other important areas? Is it probable? Shouldn’t we find out before we elect a president?
Where we fundamentally disagree is, THIS, this right here, is the hill worth dying on. Yeah, fraud in elections is talked about every time. I remember sitting at the dinner table listening to my grandparents…..union Democrats, by the way, talking about it. I remember my parents talking about it. Well, now we’ve got actual whistleblowers, people willing to put their freedom, and probably, their very lives on the line to expose it. We’ve now got actual proof that machines were rigged. This is it. This is where we go to the mattresses to fight for our constitutional republic.
https://www.depernolaw.com/uploads/2/7/0/2/27029178/antrim_michigan_forensics_report_%5B121320%5D_v2_%5Bredacted%5D.pdf
Allen West recognizes the seriousness of the juncture we currently find ourselves at. It would be great if you would recognize it, too, and throw your support behind those who are trying to save the republic. This is really bigger than just Trump or Biden at this point.
Bill, I read the lengthy report by Russell James Ramsland, Jr. on the ‘rigged’ Dominion voting machines in Michigan. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true. Let him take his ‘proof’ to the FBI because if his allegations are true, the vote rigging is a federal crime..
Apparently you’ve missed or ignored the whole point of this post. It has nothing to o with voter fraud. It’s about the wacko proposal for Texas to secede and that the Texas GOP should put forth proposals that will keep the state from turning blue in 2024. Allen West isn’t doing that.
per Mr. West’s response last week to your Yahoo News take on what he said, “I did not say we should secede (note the text you provided), I said we should make a pact with states that will follow the US constitution. The states that did not follow the constitution have shown they have already seceded.
Howie, you’re nothing but a political bomb thrower. You made a goofy essay out of the goofy interpretation the left made.
Dan, “Perhaps law-abiding states should bond together and form a Union of states” is clearly a call for secession. Any one with a basic knowledge of the English language understands West is proposing a secession.
And that quote is not from Yahoo, its straight from the GOP press release.
so bonding together to follow the US constitution is secession but bonding together to violate the constitution isn’t?
If you’re going the read into his words something he doesn’t say, and then refutes the goofy interpretation you ascribe to then it’s got to be okay for me to say you endorse insurrection, which is closer to secession than bonding to follow the law of the land.
Dan, you are obviously lacking in reading comprehension. West clearly proposed secession, his denial notwithstanding.
Go back to school!
Allen West was the last straw for me. I could stomach a lot but when a card carrying war criminal is elected chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, that’s too much.
Yes, he’s a war criminal. He got a $5,000 fine through non-judicial punishment (Article 15 for those in the know), was relieved of his battalion command in Iraq and hustled out of the Army for having his troops beat a prisoner, than he himself did a mock execution. And, he’s still proud of what he did.
Look it up in Wikipedia.
I’ll still probably vote in the Republican primary because that’s where decisions are made for statewide elected officials but if someone asks, I don’t think I’ll claim to be a Republican anymore.
In 1964, I helped form a Teenage Republican club at my high school. I was an officer in the University of Texas Young Republicans. I’ve worked for candidates. I was a Republican in Texas when it was a felony. But a nutcase war criminal for party chairman is too much.
I’m expecting a lot of responses calling me a Republican in name only. I guess I am now. But for a half century, I was proud to call myself a Texas Republican.
Tom,
It’s a bit unrealistic to expect people to play by Marquess of Queensberry Rules with an enemy that immolates prisoners in cages, beheads civilian women. and use kids as human shields. Also, last time I checked, the Muslims didn’t sign on to the Geneva Convention. Whatever West did, I trust he had a good reason to do it, and West didn’t even kill the guy you weep for.
The US should never have been involved in Iraq in the first place, and for that, we can place the blame on two Republicans, both with the last name of Bush. If you supported either one of those, but don’t support Col. West, that’s really the height of chutzpah. West went there because W. sent him, and West did his job to the best of his ability. Wish I could say the same thing about the Bush clan.
I am a retired US Army judge advocate. I expect officers and enlisted in the US Army to obey the law. The law of armed conflict is part of US law.
What you’re saying is that what West did would be acceptable to you if someone from a different army did it to a US POW. You would probably be leading the groups condemning the acts — and I’d be right there with you.
Iraq is a signatory to the 1949 Geneva Conventions and has been since 1956. In any case, Common Article 3 of the four conventions requiring all people be treated humanely is part of customary international law, meaning all states must follow it. Even if Iraq was not a party to the conventions, we are and we have an obligation to follow them.
I’m not weeping for some poor Iraqi police officer abused by West although it is interesting that it turns out the guy wasn’t involved in any acts against US forces. I’m weeping for the integrity of the Armed Forces of the United States and there weren’t any terrorist attacks against West’s troops between the time of the incident and when he was relieved of his command about a month later.
It doesn’t make any difference whether a war is popular or unpopular. During armed conflict, combatants are expected to follow the law. I served my country for 21 years honorably. I went out of my way not to violate the law. I expect every other member of the Armed Forces to do the same.
Tom,
That’s a fair reply, especially given your background. I’ll defer to your knowledge and experience, but have a few questions.
“What you’re saying is that what West did would be acceptable to you if someone from a different army did it to a US POW.”
No, not exactly. I would EXPECT our enemy to do it to an American policeman under similar circumstances.. If the situation was reversed, and Iraq successfully invaded and occupied the US, dissolved our government, and instituted its own Vichy American government (let’s call it a Coalition Provisional Authority) in its stead, I would do exactly what the Iraqi cop did. I would resist. I would participate actively, but surreptitiously, in trying to kill the occupying army. And I would expect that if caught, I would be interrogated, tortured, and ultimately killed.
Now here’s the questions:
Should I be entitled to Geneva Convention protections? I am not a soldier, and I’m obviously not representing the American government that signed on to the Geneva Convention, because it’s been disbanded, neither am I representing the Coalition Provisional Authority when helping plan attacks on the occupiers.
The guy in question is or was an Iraqi cop, not a soldier. And he was obviously not working for the Iraqi Army in any capacity, since the army, like the government that signed on to the Geneva Convention, was disbanded. At the time of the ‘war crime,’ Saddam had already been deposed and the country was presumably being run by a (puppet) Coalition Provisional Authority. Did this brand new CPA sign on to the Geneva Convention? Seriously, I don’t know. Either way, can we agree that the Iraqi cop, by participating in the planning of ambushes on West’s troops, was not acting in his official capacity as a policeman? Yes? OK, so who WAS the cop moonlighting for in planning attacks on US troops?
A: Non governmental Muslim resistance.
How is a non state actor entitled to relief via the Geneva Convention? I’m not a lawyer, and will defer to your legal opinion, but how is what happened not a “Red Dawn” type situation? The cop is Patrick Swayze, participating in resistance activities against the occupiers. If Swayze, instead of being a high school student, was instead, the local sheriff, does he have the expectation of Geneva Convention protections? He’s serving under an occupation government.
Article 4 of the third geneva convention defines who is a prisoner of war. I won’t quote it here but if you google third geneva convention, you can read it.
It can get complex and some of the things happening don’t fit neatly into the Article 4 definition.
While you’re at it, read Common Article 3, just above it. It applies to all countries in all situations of armed conflict. Basically, it says you have to treat people humanely.
As for the Iraqui cop, he apparently was pure D innocent. Woops.
Also, torture doesn’t get the information you want. A torture victim will say whatever it takes to make the pain stop. I know people who could get you to admit you were the guy on the grassy knoll in Dallas who got Kennedy and you did it on a lunch break from your germ warfare experiments.
As for the Red Dawn scenario, they were what is called a leve en masse entitled to PW protection under Articles 4(A)(2) and 4(A)(6).
BTW, it’s nice to see someone who thinks this through
Tom,
I can understand your frustration at some of Col. West’s statements and proposals. However calling him a war criminal is wrong. It has no basis in actual fact. He was fined for violating some army rules, not for violating the Geneva Conventions. After he paid his fine, he retired with full honors and benefits. That does not, in any way describe a “war criminal”.
I don’t know a whole lot about politics. But I am absolutely sure about this: There are a whole lot of Republicans who are a lot more liberal than I am. And I’d be a whole lot happier if the people in charge of the Republican party and the Republicans running for office were more conservative and less willing to compromise.
BUT, I also know this: The very worst RINO you can think of is a damn sight better than Biden, Harris, et.al. And, add long as we continue to insist on absolutely ideological purity in our own ranks, we’re unlikely to win a lot of battles against our real opponents. For those of you who hated Trump – do you relish the thought of 4 years of Kamala Harris running things?
So Tom, here’s my question. Which would you prefer would you rather be called a Republican or a Democrat? Or, are you just going to sit back and watch the Hallmark channel until The State party installs someone who suits you?
I spent about 15 years defending people charged with war crimes in international tribunals. I’ve taught law of armed conflict for the US Army. What West did was a war crime, pure and simple. The Uniform Code of Military Justice does not have punitive articles labeled “war crime.” Instead, people are prosecuted in courts martial for common crimes such as murder, rape, larceny or whatever.
I know a war crime when I see one. Prosecuting West before an international tribunal would have been easy.
I didn’t leave the Republican Party because of policy disagreement although, Lord knows, I’ve had plenty. I left because West was elected chairman. I would have done the same thing if any war criminal was chosen as party leader.
One other thing, Albert. West was charged with assault and conduct against the good order and discipline of the Army. During an Article 32 investigation (the military equivalent of a grand jury), everyone agreed to settle it for a $5,000 fine as non-judicial punishment and get West out of the Army.
The current state party leadership is testimony to the disproportionate power the highly motivated more extreme factions of the party wields in internal party politics. It’s the exact opposite of the state house picking speaker.
Until the system is changed in regard to picking the state chair we have to accept that occasionally the more extreme factions of the party will carry the day.
All too often people involved with in the inner workings of the party forget that they are the exception, not the norm. Average voter Joe doesn’t care about the party chair. Average voter Joe does care about employment, education, and is help available for those in need.
After next cycle average voter Joe isn’t even going to remember more than the high points of Covid. They will be back to basic issues.
Tom, the answer isn’t throwing in the towel. The answer is becoming more involved in aspects of life that you think are important. Be th guy that average voter Joe thinks is a good person who happens to be Republican. That means average voter Joe is going to be more likely to listen to you when you say who you are supporting. It’s going to take a bunch of us average voter Joe types who make a difference to stem the blue trajectory locally.
Greg: There comes a time when the leadership is so bad that any reasonable person should get out of the organization. If the state chairman was a doctor who as a military physician deliberately treated less seriously wounded Americans before more seriously wounded prisoners of war (yes, that’s a war crime), I would feel the same way.
If people depart rather than pushing for what they believe in how will change be achieved?
Howie, You are right. Texas cannot secede and why should it? As it stands now Texas has it’s own State Bullion Depository. High Tech and large financial companies are moving to Texas weekly. Alone, the Texas petro-chemical companies dominate world wide and Texas has it’s own power grid. There is also the Houston/Galveston Port which is a huge operation that some say may be the largest in the nation. Texas takes care of itself. We have one of the nations strictest welfare/unemployment operations. Yes, we are independent and we can secede if we are divided into 5 states. But why do that? Texas has it made with agriculture and employment. I hope everyone bones up on their history and remembers what happened to Texas when it Joined the Confederacy against the advice of Governor Sam Houston, who was placed under house arrest. 30 years of hard times besieged Texas and if it wasn’t for our natural resources and cattle we probably wouldn’t have survived. As it stands now Texas is in a symbiotic relationship with the United States. Still, Don’t Mess with Texas.