Rep. West, as reported by the Washington Post:
"I have sat back and allowed myself time to assess the current episode revealing itself in Sanford, Florida involving the shooting of 17-year-old Treyvon Martin. First of all, if all that has been reported is accurate, the Sanford Police Chief should be relieved of his duties due to what appears to be a mishandling of this shooting in its early stages. The US Navy SEALS identified Osama Bin Laden within hours, while this young man laid on a morgue slab for three days. The shooter, Mr Zimmerman, should have been held in custody and certainly should not be walking free, still having a concealed weapons carry permit. From my reading, it seems this young man was pursued and there was no probable cause to engage him, certainly not pursue and shoot him....against the direction of the 911 responder. Let's all be appalled at this instance not because of race, but because a young American man has lost his life, seemingly, for no reason. I have signed a letter supporting a DOJ investigation. I am not heading to Sanford to shout and scream, because we need the responsible entities and agencies to handle this situation from this point without media bias or undue political influences. This is an outrage."
Republicans who spend their time trying to twist Obama's empathetic words to the family (Gingrich, Santorum) into something to stoke white resentment, or dodge the issues with careful prepared statements (Romney) have lost a critical opportunity to demonstrate their integrity in the teeth of one of the most divisive issues this country grapples with on an ongoing basis. Rep. West is showing you the way you ought to be straight talking about what happened to Trayvon Martin. Learn the lesson.
