I’m a progressive, not a communist, U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree says

WASHINGTON — Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine isn’t taking kindly to being called a communist.

Republican Rep. Allen West of Florida said this week that he believes 75-plus House Democrats are members of the Communist Party. He was referring to members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, to which Pingree belongs.

Pingree tweeted Thursday that she’s a “proud progressive, not a communist.”

In a formal statement, she said name-calling does “nothing to help members of Congress bridge their differences.” And just to be perfectly clear, she says, “I am not now and never have been a member of the Communist Party.”