I wouldn't go that far - most of the voting population aren't political junkies - they see Bush, Frist and Lott as the face of the GOP.
This is more of a "I didn't abandon the party, the party abandoned me" type situation for most.
In any event, it doesn't matter if the voting public is logical or not in this instance the bottom line is that unless the GOP gets on the right side of this issue before November, we will probably never see another GOP controlled senate or house in our lifetime.
Then they're ignorant. They should be looking at their own GOP senators and governor.