Lot of responses to choose from, hope you don’t mind that I chose yours.
;-)
“Convert the Tea Party” is code for “exploit then discard.” First saw this line stated by Katrina Vanden Heuvel a couple years back in a column or two she wrote about the KY Dem Party teaming up with the KY Tea Party to oust Mitch McConnell.
This isn’t to support McConnell or the GOPe, but what the Dems/Libs are selling is pure snake oil. They’ll partner with the Tea Party to knock off GOPe candidates, then win elections by portraying the Tea Party nominees as radical extremist who are taking the GOP off the far right nutcase edge.
That’s the base political mechanics of it.
Conservatives need to chart our own course here, understanding that as much as we despise the GOPe, the Dems/Progressives are just as bad, and magnitudes more sinister.
Cruz and the others, who seem to be charting out a Populist Conservative path are the answer. We need to play offense against the Dems/Libs first and always. And if we do, the GOPe will quickly find itself out of the driver’s seat as a consequence.
Not in the slightest. I only take gentle issue with your assertion that the Dems are 'magnitudes' more sinister. We saw in Mississippi just how bad the 'Republican' Party can be.
The fact of the matter is that both sides despise conservatism because frankly, they fear it. And you are quite right to note that conservatives need to give both parties something to be scared about.