EMILY’s List President Stephanie Schriock Statement on Republican Silence In the Face of Outrageous and Sexist Attack By Rep. Allen West

WASHINGTON – Yesterday afternoon, Rep. Allen West emailed a sexist, hateful tirade to Republican leaders in which he called Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz “vile,” and “despicable,” told her to “shut the heck up,” accused her of not being “a lady,” and said she was therefore undeserving of his respect.

Almost 24 hours later, there has been complete silence from the Republican Party.

Not a single member or leader has condemned Rep. West’s sexist attack on his colleague.

EMILY’s List President Stephanie Schriock released the following statement:

“24 hours of silence from the Republican Party speaks volumes to the women of America. Rep. Allen West’s words were threatening, sexist, indicative of a person totally unable to control his anger or focus on critical issues to Americans in Florida and throughout the country. Directing that kind of hate toward a colleague is totally unacceptable and has no place in American politics. Every member of his Party ought to be as outraged as we are. The fact that Republicans are silent on the matter – along with their appalling anti-woman, anti-family agenda – demonstrates how unfit they are to provide leadership in this country. Women expect more, and women voters will ensure that we replace these guys with Democratic women, like Lois Frankel, who will work toward real solutions.”

In the 2009-2010 cycle, EMILY's List raised more than $38.5 million to support its mission of recruiting and supporting women candidates, helping them build strong campaigns, and mobilizing women voters to turn out and vote. With a community of more than 900,000 members across the country, EMILY's List is one of the largest political action committees in the nation. Since its founding in 1985, EMILY's List has worked to elect 86 pro-choice Democratic women to the U.S. House, 16 to the U.S. Senate, nine governors, and hundreds of women to the state legislatures, state constitutional offices, and other key local offices. In the 2009-2010 cycle, EMILY's List had the largest number of members and donors in our 25 year history.