Tea Party Holds Ground in GOP Primaries

thedailybeast.com ^ | 8/6/14 | Ben Jacobs

[cotton1706]

The Tea Party may not be knocking off incumbents, but it doesn’t appear to be losing any ground within the GOP.

So while conservatives weren’t able to claim any more establishment scalps this 2014 primary cycle to place on the mantelpiece next to Eric Cantor or Richard Lugar, they didn’t suffer any significant losses or real backlash from the pro-business wing of the Republican Party.

The big target on the right Tuesday was Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts, who faced a challenge from Milton Wolf, a suburban Kansas City radiologist who first gained fame for being Barack Obama’s conservative second cousin. While the most serious Tea Party groups, such as Club for Growth, never played in the race, Wolf got endorsements from the Senate Conservatives Fund and the right-wing personalities Mark Levin and Erick Erickson. The challenger ran a race straight out of the Tea Party playbook, attacking Roberts for not being a real resident of Kansas and for being too liberal.

snip

Roberts ended up winning a narrow but decisive victory Tuesday, by a margin of 48 percent to 41 percent. Two other minor Tea Party candidates got the remaining votes, as the underfunded and unimpressive Wolf surprisingly managed to hold a three-term incumbent to less than 50 percent.

[cotton1706]

Establishment "warchests" are being drained and cards are being forced to the table. Mitch and his goons have had to play every card, every trick, and carry out every insidious plot to maintain their power. And it's not over yet. They still need to face the voters in November.

[Qiviut]

News of the Tea Party’s ‘demise’ have been greatly exaggerated - we (the Taxed Enough Already) people are NOT going away.

[Mozilla]

Yes that is true. I am in agreement. I live outside KC and I voted for Milton Wolf and he carried the county.

[trisham]

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[Olog-hai]

Typical Daily Therion, calling the GOP-e the “pro-business wing” when they are just the opposite.

[EagleUSA]

The GOPe — working hard to lose the battle for the Senate.

[KC_Lion]

Yes that is true. I am in agreement. I live outside KC and I voted for Milton Wolf and he carried the county.

I did the same thing Mozilla!

It's shows we are still serious about this.

Good Article too if you might be feeling a little blue.

[Nextrush]

A close vote for a relative unknown candidate who picks up over 40 percent of the vote with the 52 percent anti-Roberts vote split three ways.

The GOPe ran splitter candidates to help Roberts win.

[cripplecreek]

I hate seeing Kerry Bentivolio go but I do think I got a good state representative Candidate named Brett Roberts. Roberts is a farmer who promises to work on restoring property rights to rural people. Says he’s sick of urban people making uninformed decisions about how rural people will live.

[Nextrush]

The GOPe is the pro-crony business wing.

[boycott]

The Tea Party may not be knocking off incumbents, but it doesn’t appear to be losing any ground within the GOP.

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Close doesn’t count in this business.

I remember George H. W. Bush had a 90% approval rating before going into the primaries for the 1992 election. Pat Buchanan hammered and hammered away at Bush. This helped soften Bush 1’s approval numbers and I believe helped Bill Clinton get elected.

Beating up a republican that helps a less desirable democrat win isn’t exactly a great strategy.

I would prefer that all the GOPe be dumped but I don’t want to do so for something even worse.

[boycott]

The GOPe — working hard to lose the battle for the Senate.

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I’ve got to agree with that.

[dfwgator]

One reason why I think it’s stupid to have intra-party debates.

[cotton1706]

“The GOPe ran splitter candidates to help Roberts win.”

That too is one of the tricks they’re using to maintain power. And the people will become aware of it.

[Monterrosa-24]

“...calling the GOP-e the “pro-business wing” when they are just the opposite....”

You’re right of course. The elite are no friends of small businesses and entrepreneurship. But they are friends of the giant politically-correct corporations.

I have some humble investments within the Edward Jones Investment firm but it is out there promoting ObamaCare.

[Ingtar]

Here’s to the hope of another Cantoring on Thursday in Tennessee. I will not be surprised if Carr pulls it off.

[upsdriver]

Tea party candidates isn’t the proper term, IMO. There is no tea party nominating convention. What it really is, is an establishment alternative candidate. People gravitate towards those candidates because they are fed up with the cronyistic, politics as usual crowd in DC. The fact that someone challenges an establishment elite automatically gets branded tea party. TP = Terminally Pissed off.

[ilgipper]

we would be wise to refer to them as the ‘big-business’ wing of the party.

[Tennessee Nana]

Tomorrow, Thursday we have our primary here in TN..

For 10 days last month we had our early voting and record crowds have already voted, illegal aliens and the dead in Polk County included...

hopefully the US Senate vote was for Joe Carr and not for Uber-RINO Lamar! Alexander..

I went to the event for Joe Carr this morning in Chattanooga..

He was confident and hopeful and ready for tomorrow..

He has a proven Conservative record in the TN legislature..

I think he will stay strong and vote Conservative in DC..

He is solid anti-AMNESTY..

we need him in TN..

[boycott]

One reason why I think it’s stupid to have intra-party debates.

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The first objective should be putting roadblocks in front of Hussein Obama’s destruction of the USA. One of the most important things is to take the senate away from him.

I am 100% for electing conservative candidates and removing both liberal democrats and republicans. If that doesn’t work, I am for the next best option .... whatever that may be.