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It’s official: Col. Allen West is a Texan

February 12, 2015
Staff

WRITER

Colonel Allen West joined the radio program today and announced he’s moved to Texas, as he is now President & CEO of the NCPA in Dallas. West is a strong, liberty minded conservative whose surprising re-election loss in Congress shocked the political world. Glenn asked West for his thoughts on a wide range of issues, including ongoing world events. Watch the conversation below where West and Glenn discuss ISIS, terrorism, World War III, political allies, and our country's future.

Rough transcript below:

GLENN: The boys asked me earlier today because I believe we're on course, without moral clarity, we're on course, between Russia and what is happening in the Middle East, a global war.

WEST: You're there.

GLENN: Yes.

WEST: You are there.

GLENN: We're at the beginning.

WEST: Yeah, we're not recognize it. And I hate to say this, but if there's a message that I can send to my former colleagues, I would not support the president's resolution because it does not have any clarity.

GLENN: Correct.

WEST: What you heard him present yesterday was really just a repeat of what he said back in August. We're going to degrade. We're going to defeat. We're going to destroy.

Now, a year ago, ISIS was about 3,000 fighters when they come over. It was the reconstitution of al-Qaeda in Iraq. Now they're 50,000. And it's so funny that you had his counterterrorism expert testifying before, I think a House committee, talking about the 18,000 fighters that have come into -- into ISIS, but yet the president is talking about their morale is down.

There is a complete disconnect. And like you said, once again, there is no specific strategy or clarity. How do we defeat them diplomatic -- how do we isolate them economically? How do we then use, you know, the leverage of information systems to defeat them ideologically. We can't do that because we have a president that won't even say Islamic terrorism. How will you defeat the enemy when you don't recognize the ideology driving them?

GLENN: I answered the boys this morning when we were talking about this. I said, I think we're on the verge of World War III.

WEST: Yes.

GLENN: And it is not worth -- because they said. Can we defeat them without ground troops? And I said I wouldn't send any ground troops or anybody in until we have moral clarity. Because all we're doing is throwing bodies into something -- it's just a meat grinder. It's just a meat grinder.

PAT: But if ever somehow obtain moral clarity, and we won't as long as this guy is president, but can you defeat them without ground troops?

WEST: No, you can't. The only time in the history of United States military we defeated someone with air power, Hiroshima, Nagasaki. Otherwise, you have people to close with and destroy the enemy, if that's the task that you want to achieve, is to destroy them.

PAT: And could you not at this point put together a pretty solid Islamic Middle Eastern coalition with us? Jordanians, I would think would be on board. The Saudis would be on board.

WEST: You have Egypt.

PAT: Egypt.

WEST: Well, see, I don't trust the Saudis. Because a lot of the funding for Wahhabism and a lot of these ISIS fighters are being fueled out of Saudi Arabia. And, of course, 15 of the 19 9/11 conspirators were out of Saudi Arabia. But, Egypt, definitely. Jordan, definitely. The Kurds, the Peshmerga, definitely. The United States of America. And then you probably would be able to get some support out of the UAE. Because when I was in Afghanistan, the UAE special forces were operating there in southern Afghanistan. That's how you build a coalition.

GLENN: But we are -- like you said with the Muslim Brotherhood. We're against Egypt. We're on the wrong side.

WEST: We're sending the wrong message.

GLENN: No, no, no. We're on the wrong side. We're on the wrong side not just sending the wrong message. What is your opinion of what's happening with Benjamin Netanyahu right now?

WEST: That's even worse. There's another strong ally we could have. But instead, the Obama administration is sending campaign operatives to work against him. Why would you want to work against your best ally and the best leader that you have on your side? You know, no one is going to join a coalition of the United States of America when the United States of America is not leading. Coming back to what you just said. There is no moral clarity. This is about -- as clear as mud. When you look at what the president -- he didn't ask for any authorization going into Libya. Look at what Libya has become. Look at what is happening in Yemen. And this story that potentially a state department representative told United States Marines to destroy their weapons as part of an evacuation of an embassy.

GLENN: From Yemen. Right?

WEST: Yes, from Yemen. And I think that is the third embassy that the United States of America has closed since 2010. So not only --

GLENN: That's insane.

WEST: Not only are we on the wrong side. We are sending the wrong message to our allies.

VP debate recap: A Vance victory

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

This might have been the most consequential VP debate in recent memory.

For those of you who missed the debate, it was a decisive victory for J.D. Vance and the Trump-Vance team as a whole. Vance presented a calm, collected, and considerate side of the Republican party that compliments Trump and helps to make their platform more palatable. Meanwhile, Tim Walz had a lackluster, though certainly not catastrophic, night. He had a few embarrassing gaffes and came across as overly nervous, but like Vance, kept it civil.

Both VP candidates entered the stage as relative unknowns to most Americans, and by the end, both men had given an accurate representation of their characters. Here is a brief recap just in case you missed the debate:

J.D. Vance looked great

ANGELA WEISS / Contributor | Getty Images

Vance came out of the gate swinging, with a stellar opening statement that helped set the stage for the rest of the debate. He delivered a concise yet compelling recap of his life, which framed him as everything Walz claims to be: a relatable veteran from humble beginnings who earned his position through hard work and service. He then went on to deliver a clear and palatable defense of Trump's platform and mission while cooly drawing attention to the failures of the Biden-Harris administration.

Overall, J.D. Vance looked incredibly presidential. He presented himself not just as a capable vice president, but as a strong successor to Trump and as a valid replacement if anything should happen to the former president between now and the end of his hypothetical second term. Vance also successfully dispelled the notion that he is "weird" as Walz called him, and if anyone looked strange during the debate, it certainly wasnot Vance.

Tim Walz's gaffes

Chip Somodevilla / Staff | Getty Images

While Tim Walz certainly didn't have an awful night, he did not stack up well against Vance. Walz had a major gaffe around halfway through the debate when asked to explain the change in his position on assault weapon bans. Walz then claimed that he had befriended school shooters during his time in office. While that was clearly not the intention of what he was saying, it was embarrassing nonetheless.

Another weak moment was when the moderators asked Walz to explain a claim he had made regarding being in Hong Kong during the infamous Tiananmen Square protest in 1989, which has since been proven false. Walz gave a long-winded, rambling answer about taking students to visit China and how Trump should have joined in on those trips, before being called out by the moderator for dodging the question.

Vance fact-checked the fact-checkers

Chip Somodevilla / Staff | Getty Images

One of the conditions of the CBS debate was that the moderators would not fact-check the debaters live, but instead rely on after-the-matter fact-checking. But, CBS couldn't keep to its own rules. While Vance was describing the migrant crisis that has swelled during the Biden-Harris administration, one of the CBS moderators, Margaret Brennan, chimed in with a "fact check." She claimed that the Haitian migrants in Ohio have legal status, to which Vance clapped back by calling Brennan out for breaking the rules of the debate, then proceeded to correct her, explaining that they only had legal status due to overreach by the Biden-Harris administration.

Dockworker strike: Everything you need to know

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

At midnight on September 30th, dockworkers across the East Coast went on strike, effectively cutting the country's import and export capabilities in half.

Don't go out and panic buy a pallet of toilet paper and instant ramen just yet. It's going to take some time for the full effects of the strike to be felt and hopefully, the strike will be good and over by then. But there are no guarantees, and this election cycle could get significantly more insane as we draw near to the election. And even if the strike is settled quickly, it shows growing cracks in our infrastructure and industrial capacity that needs to be addressed if America wants to maintain its global dominance.

Here is everything you need to know about the dockworker strike:

What do the dockworkers want?

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

As with most strikes, pay is the driving factor behind this situation the country now finds itself in. The longshoremen want more pay, and with rising inflation who can blame them? After all, working the docks is hard and dangerous business, and fair compensation only seems... fair. But when you compare the wage of a dockworker, which is around $100,000 to $200,00 a year to the average income in America of $56,000, suddenly they seem significantly less sympathetic.

How much money are they asking for? For most Americans, a three percent raise is considered high, but the unions are asking up to 15 percent, depending on location. On top of that, they are asking for a 77 percent raise over the next six years. The West Coast dock workers recently made off with a 36 percent raise and were considered lucky. These increases in costs are just going to be transferred to the end consumer, and we'll likely see a jump in prices if these terms are accepted.

The other major ticket item is protection against automation. Autonomous ports are quickly becoming a reality, with major ports in China that are capable of handling vast amounts of cargo being run by a single office, not an army of dock workers. Naturally, the longshoremen are concerned that their jobs are at risk of being replaced by machines that can work harder, longer, for cheaper, and without risk of injury.

How will it affect Americans?

Joe Raedle / Staff | Getty Images

Don't panic yet!

It is going to take some time for consumers to feel the effects of the strike and it is possible that a resolution could happen at any time.

Week one should be pretty much business as usual. It might be a good idea to stock up on fruit and other perishables, but there is no need to go COVID-lockdown-crazy yet.

Week two is when you'll first start feeling the pinch. Fresh fruits and veggies will become scarce, along with other imported goods like shoes, toys, and TVs. Prices will start to creep up as the shelves will start to look a little sparse. The supply of tools, lumber, and other hardware materials will also begin to dry up.

By week three, the cracks in the system will really start to show. Entire industries will begin to slow down, or even stop. Factory workers will get furloughed and sent home without pay. Stores will have to ration items, prices will be sky-high, and online orders will come to a standstill. At this point, the strike will have escalated into a full-blown crisis, and even if it was resolved immediately, it would still take weeks to restore everything to working order.

At the four-week mark, the situation will have developed into a national security crisis, and as Glenn describes, a poly-crisis. Small business will be closing their doors, entire brands will be out of stock, and everything that remains will be so expensive it is unaffordable. By this point, the holiday season will be drawing near and there will be a rush on any sort of gift or decor items left. At this point, irreparable damage to our economy will have occurred and it will be months if not years before it can be mended.

While that sounds bleak, with the election just around the corner, it seems unlikely that the Biden-Harris administration will let it get that bad. That being said, their administration has not been characterized by good decision-making and reasonable policy, so there are no guarantees.

What can be done?

The Washington Post / Contributor | Getty Images

The big question is "Why hasn't Biden already done something?"

President Biden, who ran on the image of a blue-collar, union-worker, has been uncharacteristically absent from the issue. Despite his earlier involvement in a train strike, Biden has declared that involvement in union fights is not a presidential issue unless it getsreally bad.

So where's the line? At what point will he step in? He has to understand that an economic crisis right before the election will reflect poorly on Kamala.

Join Glenn TONIGHT for BlazeTV's exclusive VP debate coverage!

Anna Moneymaker / Staff, Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

Join Glenntonight for Vice Presidential debate coverage you do not want to miss!

Tonight is the first (and only) Vice Presidential debate, and it will be hosted by CBS News. But don't be reliant on CBS News or any other mainstream media channel for their biased coverage. Join the BlazeTV live stream tonight to get the uncensored truth alongside top-quality commentary from Glenn and the rest of the world-class panel.

Glenn is joined by Megyn Kelly, Liz Wheeler, Allie Beth Stuckey, Steve Deace, Jill Savage, Dave Landau, and more to cover the CBS News Vice Presidential Debate. Blaze Media subscribers gain access to live chat with the fantastic panel of hosts! If you subscribe today by visiting BlazeTV.com/debate you will get $40 off of your annual subscription with code DEBATE. This is the largest discount ever offered, so take advantage NOW!

See you TONIGHT at 8 PM ET for an event you do NOT want to miss it!

POLL: Can the VP debate affect the election?

DOMINIC GWINN / Contributor, Dia Dipasupil / Staff | Getty Images

The first (and likely only) Vice President debate will be held on CBS News on Tuesday, October 1st.

The debate takes place at 9 p.m. Eastern Time and will be the first time we see J.D. Vance and Tim Walz face off in person. Typically, the VP debate is little more than a formality, and rarely does it affect the election in any significant way. But this is no ordinary election. The stakes are higher than they have been in years, and Trump and Harris are still in a razor-thin race, according to the polls. Both Vance and Walz are relative newcomers to the national stage and still have room to make an impression on the American people, and with the race as tight as it is, that might make all the difference.

So what do you think? Can this VP debate make an impact on the election? Are you going to tune in? And what sort of questions and issues need to be brought up? Let us know in the poll below:

Will this VP debate be important in the overall election?

Are you going to watch the VP debate?

Should the debaters be asked about the Biden-Harris administration's failing economy?

Should the debaters be asked about climate change and energy policy?

Should the debaters be asked about the rise of globalism?