Allen West's Candid Remarks on Dr. Carson: He Broke the Unwritten Rule That Black Men Can't Criticize Obama

Ever since Blaze readers sent Dr. Ben Carson's prayer breakfast speech into the viral category, plenty of other people have noticed and are weighing in. On Monday, it was former Rep. Allen West's turn, and he didn't hold back.

Appearing on Fox News with Greta Van Susteren, West defended Carson against critics who might say that the speech -- which was critical of the national debt, among other things, in front of the president -- was inappropriate. His main point? Carson's only sin was breaking an unwritten rule for black men.

"Now, I think what has everyone upset is that he violated the unwritten rule of being an African-American male and he criticized the policies of President Obama, which I can somewhat understand, having been on the other side of a lot of attacks, as well," West explained.

He continued:

But if you go back to September of 2012, there was the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Emanuel Cleaver, who gave an incredible statement saying that if anyone else were in the White House other than President Obama, that they would be marching on the White House, and that the President Obama knows that he is given a deference that would not be given to a white president.

And we were talking about the incredible 14 percent unemployment rate in the black community. And I think that we cannot continue to go on believing that all we can do is ask the president what his favorite color is and continue to have these softball interviews. We have to start talking about the policies that are failing this country, and I think Dr. Carson -- hat tip to him for having that platform, being able to challenge those policies.

He went on to decry the "free pass" Obama has been given by so many, especially in the media.

You can watch the interview below:

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• Watch the original speech