Do you really think that the current Rino leadership in the House and Senate are honored and revered by anybody but the walking dead country clubbers? The Rino's are flotsam and jetsam waiting to fulfill their destiny of being swept away.
The RINOs are the representatives of the CEOs and estate owners who aren’t as ideologically conservative but are Republicans because they resent the Democrats’ attempts at class warfare and attacks on wealth.
They may not have the passion of conservative voters but they have the wallets we only wish we had. When a candidate can energize both wings, the party can top the Democrats. When they can’t, they lack the electoral strength to defeat the Democrats.
“Country clubbers” can be a pain in the ass but we need their money and support to beat Obama just as they need our grassroots activism to get voters to the polls to beat Obama. Either side cannot win it alone.
If Palin cannot tap into the “country clubbers”, she’ll ultimately fail. Same is true of Bachmann or Cain. Romney and Huntsman come from the other direction - they need to attract conservatives and, if they can’t, they’ll ultimately fail.
I’m a social and economic conservative. In a perfect world, I want the most socially and economically conservative candidate to win. But, to beat the Democrats, we also need someone who can energize the “country clubbers” and RINOs. If Sarah can do that, I’m happy but if it takes a Perry to satisfy both wings, I can live with that too. More than anything, we *have* to beat Obama to have any chance at rolling back all the damage he’s done.