This illustrates the dangers of a so-called “national” Tea Party organization. They are only as good - or as smart - as their “leaders,” and this one is dumb. A true TP leader is not a media whore with an inflated sense of self-importance, and a true TP leader does NOT make a profit from the movement.
When we allow someone to purportedly speak for the TP movement nationally, we ALL run the risk of one of these blowhards making a stupid statement, which the media will be only to happy to report ubiquitously. That puts the rest of us on the defensive - explaining away positions and/or endorsements that reflect NO national consensus.
All that being said, Brown and Snowe do not belong on this list - conservatives cannot win those seats, and I would rather have anyone with an (R) next to their names (IN THOSE SEATS) for counting purposes, if nothing else.
That (R) just might result in a Senate majority, the implications of which go far beyond making a statement about RINOs. IF we had a super-majority in the Senate, we could afford to punish RINOs like those two, but until then, in some seats we have to take what we can get.
You just illustrated the danger of a “national” TEA Party Organization. It is up to the individual TEA parties what happens in their states. If they decide to primary Snowe in Maine, that is their business. In Massachusetts, if they don’t like the way Brown played them and want to run someone against him, that is their business.
The thing RINOs have to fear is that TEA Party members massively vote in primaries. Their typical cocktail party GOP person does not show up to vote in primaries. That gives the TEA Parties a great deal of power in the primary. The elitist RINO class can only come back later and run as an independent like Princess Lisa Moo-cowski in Alaska and Charlie Crisp in Florida.
You can say whatever you want, but if the local TEA parties want their local RINO challenged, they will be challenged. Only the democrats can count on their people mindlessly walking in lockstep. The elitist RINOs wish they had that kind of party.
Perhaps if those RINOs realize they can’t count on the seat being theirs forever (Hatch, Lugar, Snowe), they will pay attention to we the people and will not ride roughshod over the people’s will.
Re your #158 - With a moan and a sigh, I reluctantly have to agree with your assessment.