The Tea Party you "remember" really never was the idealized construct any of us desire it to be. Those who lead and seek to speak as "The Voice of the Tea Party" are cut from the same cloth as those doing the same in any other political party/movement in history. They are the same flawed human beings each of us encounter in our daily activities.
I'm thinking of the rally in Philadelphia a couple of years ago. Had that breath-of-fresh air quality.
You are quite correct of course. I was caught up in the idea of the grassroots folks being the voice of the party, and that candidates should be listeners, not talkers as it were.
Yes, humans are flawed. Sometimes we conservatives vet our candidates a bit harshly. The left would push a kiddie molester as a candidate, and we expect ours to be perfect. Beating up our candidates over trivial things, while the left institutes 'radio silence' on candidates whom they know are greatly flawed.
The left essentially owns the First Amendment. We need to take it back.
This country is so polarized that I think that there is going to be a showdown. Call it irreconcilable differences. The left controls all things needed to keep our Constitutional Republic viable. Of course, they don't want that form of government. Big trouble coming.