The only time we tried a "little tent full of purists" in a national election was 1964, which bombed but laid the foundation for Ronald Reagan's political career.
Unless you mean the Reagan years. No, I guess that doesn't work for you does it. That little tent actually did save America.
This is 2008 and the little tent has collapsed. I long for the Reagan years, but we’re fighting an uphill battle against the far-left and the MSM, and a fanatical bunch of murderers who want to destroy us. Time to re-evaluate the situation, IMO.