Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's recommended pick for the next Republican vice-presidential candidate -- Congressman Allen West -- was Thursday blamed for the death of "Facts.''
The Chicago Tribune, in a mock obituary, reported that "to the shock of most sentient beings, Facts (reportedly born 360 B.C.) died Wednesday, April 18, after a long battle for relevancy with the 24-hour news cycle, blogs and the Internet. Though few expected Facts to pull out of its years-long downward spiral, the official cause of death was from injuries suffered last week when Florida Republican Rep. Allen West steadfastly declared that as many as 81 of his fellow members of the U.S. House of Representatives are communist."
CNN's Soledad O'Brien later called on West to name names, but he refused. Palin, herself the Republican candidate for VP during the last election cycle and now a political analyst for Fox News, earlier this month started a push for West in the job, telling Fox's Sean Hannity that West was at the "top of my list.... I love that he has that military experience. He is a public servant willing to serve for the right reasons. He understands the Constitution. He understands our national foreign policy issues that must be addressed. He has served. I really like him."
A retired U.S. Army Lt. Col., West was one of the Tea Party candidates Palin endorsed during the 2010 elections. The Tribune reported that after West made his claim the House was over-run with communists, "Facts held on for several days after that assault -- brought on without a scrap of evidence or reason -- before expiring peacefully at its home in a high school physics book. Facts was 2,372" years old.
The Tribune report appears to be a satirical attempt at humor. But it ends by suggesting that those unable to attend to the private services for Facts can "make a donation to their favorite super PAC."
Contact Craig Medred at craig(at)alaskadispatch.com