Second, to remind you, I mentioned that I had seen this decline for almost a year in attendance at various meetings which was also confirmed but TP leaders.
Third, I don't blame te TP for "not controlling the Republican Party," but then until it does or can, it isn't the force Levin makes it out to be. That is why I said if we are depending on a group that has declined in membership and not done particularly well in this year's election, then we are screwed. I don't take any satisfaction in that observation.
I think you meant to say that the Tea Party wasn't the force in 2012, that it was in 2010.
I won't dispute that observation, but I will comment that I believe the true drop in Tea Party enthusiasm coincided with the general realization that our side was not going to get behind our most dedicated and courageous champion, Sarah Palin, and that for whatever reason, she also decided that 2012 wasn't her 'moment'.
This was an enormous blow to the momentum we all saw in 2010, and should not be discounted.
That isn't to say that Sarah Palin is supported by 100% of the Tea Party, but there's no question that a large majority of those who claim membership in that movement, had also pinned their hopes for 2012 on her running for the presidency. The eight candidates who ran in the Republican primary were widely seen to be also-rans to her potential candidacy.
Choosing a clear front-runner was almost impossible for conservatives during the entire primary season. This would not have been the case, had Palin run. She would have owned the primary contest from the moment she announced, if she'd only done it.
In the end, center-right voters were faced with having to choose between a wide slate of candidates who mostly were indistinguished, and who did not embody the ideals and goals of the burgeoning movement to restore our nation's historic underpinnings quite the way Palin does.