Roger Stone, a revered figure in conservative American politics for his long history of candidate consultation, lobbying, and strategizing, apparently took his "hard edged" political style a step too far when he called recently deceased former first-lady Barbara Bush a "vindictive drunk." Due to the comments he made on conspiracy-spreading website InfoWars, he was uninvited to a gathering of the Okaloosa Republican Executive Committee by Chairman Mark Franks.
Stone commented to InfoWars host Alex Jones:
I understand I'm going to take a lot of crap for speaking the truth about Barbara Bush. She was a mean-spirited, vindictive drunk. She is ascending into hell right now. She's not going to heaven. She was a bad person.
Don't believe me? That quote is one of many extreme statements made by Stone during the full interview.
Stone also wrote on Instagram:
Barbara Bush drank so much booze, if they cremated her … her body would burn for three days.
Chairman Mark Franks regretted having to take action, but did what he had to do. He commented to the Northwest Florida Daily News:
It's tough to lose a speaker when you're three weeks out, but this is what I felt needed to be done out of respect for Barbara Bush. I thought he'd be entertaining, but for me this went over the line.
In an email, Stone claimed he was the one to cancel his own engagement because of the GOP organization's desire to censor his words.
The day that some officious country club Republican in Fort Walton Beach tells me what I can and cannot say in public will be the day that hell freezes over.
That may be so, Mr. Stone, but you may find it more difficult to find a paying job with outspoken opinions like these.
H/T - USA Today, NWF Daily News