Is this the best the tea party movement can do?
I’m generally sympathetic to the ideals of the tea party movement when they are boiled down to their small-government, self-reliance basics.
The idea of proceeding very cautiously with any intervention of the government in our personal lives strikes me as a good principle, wired directly into the founding principles of our democracy.
Polls regularly show that about two-thirds of Americans are willing to give this philosophical approach to government a try, with some basic caveats.
And a smaller, but still significant pool of voters — roughly a third — are downright furious over the expansion of the Federal government’s power and its over-sized debt.
Which brings me to my basic question:
With that large a pool of potential supporters, why can’t the tea party find a better slate of candidates?
Here in New York state, Carl Paladino has demonstrated repeatedly that his ability to talk about real issues is limited at best.
He spends half his time trying to explain away his latest rhetorical gaffe, or accusing the media of favoritism.
It’s not just that Paladino is losing badly at the polls; it’s that he is clearly temperamentally and intellectually unsuited to the task of running America’s third largest state.
Then there is Sharron Angle in Nevada, who has views so muddled and contradictory that it’s difficult to sort out what she stands for, other than her occasional hint that a revolution might be in order if she’s not elected.
Then there is Joe Miller from Alaska, the arch-libertarian who turns out to have taken advantage of nearly every government program — from unemployment benefits to farm subsidies — that he now derides.
Then there is Christine O’Donnell, whose own campaign advertisements have focused on her heartfelt argument that no, in fact, she is “not a witch.”
Did we mention tea party House candidate Rich Iott who, it turns out, took up Nazi SS re-enacting as a hobby?
And then there’s Dan Maes, the tea party-backed GOP candidate running for the governorship in Colorado, who claimed that a bike-sharing project was aimed at “converting Denver into a United Nations community.”
And what about Sarah Palin, a woman whose political resume is marred by her decision to quit the governorship of Alaska, and whose public life has become, quite literally, the stuff of reality television shows?
Again, the point here isn’t that some of these candidate are unelectable. In fact, many of them might very well squeak into office.
The larger point is that the tea party movement needs to evolve a better system for vetting and testing its candidates.
Currently, the movement operates largely as a collective counter-punch, attacking Democrats and moderate Republicans with gusto, embracing anyone who can give the Big Guys a black eye.
But beating the guy (or gal) you dislike is only half the fight.
The other half is finding honorable, qualified, and competent people who can express their views, debate in a civil way, and work effectively in Washington.
Yes, obviously, the mainstream parties screw this up sometimes, too. There are some bone-headed candidates running as “Ds” or as establishment “Rs” this year.
But this issue has become the Achilles heel of the Tea Party.
To succeed long-term, the movement has to find credible, thoughtful leaders — people who can be angry and productive at the same time.
Who knows? With a little work and patience, maybe tea partiers will find their equivalent of Ronald Reagan or Barack Obama, someone who can take the movement to the next level.
Tags: election10, politics
The Tea Party “ideology” is inherently limited. The extent of its intellectual depth is “Less government, lower taxes” (without ever having the guts to get specific). So yes, Paladino and O’Donnell and their ilk ARE the best they can do. Their “let’s be like Somalia!” ideology is not something that lends itself to substance.
The Democrat hall of fame can be enumerated as well. Like Harry Reid, who makes legislation that benefits himself and his sons in real estate. Like Charles Rangel, who apparently thinks tax laws do not apply to him. Like Tim Geithner, who only pays taxes when asked to be Treasury Secretary, etc.
As to the leader issue. I agree. A leader may emerge and take this movement to another level. Perhaps Rubio? (it’s too early to tell, I’m just suggesting). It would be ironic, however, if the conservative spokesman ends up being Hispanic.
I think Clinton is a better representative of the liberal side than Obama. What a likeble guy, even if he is wrong most of the time.
Wow Brian, not B Mann, did you get that diatribe right from Moveon.org or from MSNBC or the DNC?
B Mann, once again I’ll point out “The Tea Party” is not a cohesive national political party but rather a grass roots movement. “The Tea Party” didn’t run Sarah Palin, in fact I’m not sure anyone is actually being run by “The Tea Party”. Rather, what I see is candidates jumping onto what they think the Tea Party platform is, mentioning some TP standards and being labeled TP candidates by their press people and the media. I have no idea when Carl Palidino decided he was a TP guy, maybe 3 years ago, maybe 6 months ago. At any rate, he’s running as a Republican, not a TP candidate.
And thank you for pointing, however minuscule the reference was, to the fact the Dems and Repubs aren’t running such hot candidates either. That Barney Frank and Maxine Waters are still in office is a blemish on the Democrat Party. Learn to eat your own Dems, it’ll be better in the long run.
And I’d just like to point out one little thing regard this Rich Iott guy. I never heard of him till yesterday, but in an area with so much historical re-enactment I would think you’d have the common sense to realize what an incredible NON-STORY this is! Historical re-enactment does not mean the actors wearing the British, Confederate, Indian, French, Spanish, Japanese, Italian or German uniforms are trying to glorify or legitimize the position and, in some cases, horrible things that took place during those wars. Someone has to play the German/Japanese/Italian in a WW2 re-enactment! The purpose is to pay tribute to the brave men and women involved in the historical event. Watch the movie “Gettysburg” and particularly the scenes involving Picketts charge and tell me those incredibly brave Confederates don’t deserve our respect and honor. Frankly, the first time I watched it I cried like a little girl. War is hell and historical re-enactment helps us remember the price paid by those that came before. Trying to label this Iott guy a Nazi because of his hobby is pathetic.
Bret, I have little regard for any of the organizations you mention. Also, I am not a Democrat. Way to dodge the substance, though. No wonder you’re a Tea Partier!
First, I’ll point out something different than the other commentors.
Paladino is most definitely a Tea Party candidate, but the Tea Party movement is essentially a different beast from group to group. For example, CNY Tea Party rejected Paladino and that doesn’t make then any less of a Tea Party.
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/05/how_will_cny_tea_party_movemen.html
The heart of the movement is supposed to be about principles and not candidates. That certainly doesn’t seem to be a majority of instances though.
Also, Paladino won a landslide against Lazio. I doubt Paladino’s ascendancy was based solely on Tea Party support.
Now for the broken record response…
Wow Brian…
The leader of the Democrat Party and progressive movement is President Obama, a man schooled by communist Frank Marshall Davis and sat in the pew of Rev Wright’s church and most recently concocted a comspiracy theory regarding the Camber of Commerce. Need I go into the man’s advisors like John Holdren, who advocated forced abortions?
Since we are looking at this year’s elections, let’s look at some of the progressive movement’s best and brightest candidates. You have the ethically deprived Charlie Rangel. I won’t go exhaustively into Maurice Hinchey, who’s latest extremist exploit is to fundraise off of Fidel Castro. How about Krystal Ball in VA-01 and her Christmas Party exploits. Matt Zeller of NY-29 threathen voters with redistricting and his predicessor Eric Massa. Maxine Waters and her statement to expropriate private companies. CA gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown calling his opponent a whore. Reid’s racist remarks over Obama’s presidential bid.
That’s just in the last few weeks. I can go on!
Brian, you bought into the marketing brand packaging as opposed to kicking the tires on this one.
Here’s an interesting article on how the Tea Party ran from its Ron Paul roots:
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/17390/210904
And there is evidence here, as Bret likes to point out but of which I have been skeptical, that the partiers really did bubble up before Obama.
The Tea Party is not a party. It is little more than shared feelings of dissatisfaction.
One could be disrespectful and say it is a group of back seat drivers and Monday morning quarterbacks. And don’t we all enjoy doing that?
I thought they were just the Ross Perot party?
What happened to those guys? I think we will end up with the same here.
Pete:
The Tea Party is not a party. I agree.
I don’t believe back seat drivers would be able to pull off the landslide that you will see Nov. 6.
The tea party is just another in a long line of schemes to keep common people from uniting to to make government work for the ordinary person.
My understanding is that they are on average older, wealthier, and better educated than the average American. It just proves Lincoln correct (yet again) when he said “you can fool all of the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time.”
Brian, what substance? All I saw was repeats of the liberal talking points memos.
Knuck, look deeper friend. It’s about the ordinary person not NEEDING Gov’t to run their lives and provide their living.
@ knuckleheadedliberal…so the average American voter?
Brian,
It really seems that historically this is the evolution of these type of movements. I think (if it survives) that it will eventually moderate to some extent. For example president Obama in his early career had some very radical ideas, he and his supporters eventually learned that they would have to moderate their positions to get things done. It ticks off their radical base just like it will with the Tea Party base if they make it. The base always starts out radical, and the candidates that appeal to that base are always a bit kooky.
This says more about the pathetic state of our political discourse than anything else. The witch smear was an attempt to make her look like a nut case. Missing from the narrative was the fact that the witch thing was while she was in high school. Within a few minutes I found stories in the Washington Post and CBS news where the fact that it was in high school is nowhere to be found. Can you say media bias?
Bret, I’ve noticed over the years that when people call me friend they don’t really think of themselves as my friend.
You’re welcome to call me comrade.
notinthevillage,
how did you hear about the witch thing being in high school? I did a quick google of it and found it on yahoo news, delawareonline, and the washington post. How is that media bias? the information is out there for all to see.
Perharps instead of Paladino, the GOP should have run a North Country tea partier. Anyone like the sound of governor Sandy Lewis?
Doesn’t it seem a bit of a oxymoron to be running for government on a platform of anti-government? ok, ok…T Par T folk advocate smaller gov’t not necessarily non gov’t.
I tend to agree that they are, as Pete says, “a group of back seat drivers and Monday morning quarterbacks.” And JDM, if they pull off a landslide in Nov. it only proves that they have managed to hood wink a large number of people into believing that they are something other than the previous definition. SHould they win, a goodly number of them will probably pull a Palin and resign before their term is up.
It will be interesting to see how these TEA party people vote if elected to the House. Will they vote 90% of the time with their speaker, if in the majority? I understand that they don’t like reps who always vote with the House leader. Will they put forward bills that make significant cuts in federal spending? Highly, highly unlikely. If they do, they will not get re-elected. Will they vote for more tax cuts? More likely they will, even if it means putting their childrens future in jeopardy, as they love to remind us the Democrats are doing.
Well, we can continue to send career politician Republicrats to Washington and Albany and let them continue to lie, cheat, steal, exempt themselves from Social Sceurity and Obama Care/Medicare, etc, never discuss the possibility of term limits, avoid responsibility at all costs and just generally act like elitist idiots or we can try sending some people that better toe the line or they only serve one term. You can’t fix this mess overnight, but if we don’t start trying our goose is cooked.
Of course all this is a moot point if you think everything is hunky dory already.
Pat, They won’t resign many of them need the work. I am not just dissing them, Christine O’Donnel certainly is not as bad as she is portrayed, but the fact is that women needs a job.
On the other hand we can’t have it both ways if voters decide to change our Congress in November it will be no more of a hood wink than when they voted for “change” in 2008 with President Obama.
Maybe voters have just decided that the actual ideas being put forth in the last 2 years simply don’t work, they are a failure. That’s how I basically feel about many of them. This health care bill IS bad it is going to actually end up hurting health care access in this country, it needs to be repealed. Things like that, its not always smoke and mirrors, sometimes it might really be performance.
I think the Tea PArty has become a victim of it’s own methods. If you look back over the past two years and take a look at the baggage that they have saddled themselves with, it’s no wonder that moderates, (and like it or not, the vast majority of voters are fairly centrist), are uncomfortable, to say the least, about many of Tea PArty manifestations. Seeing people seething into the television cameras, screaming about ” … their ANGER!”, “MY Country”, and ranting in the streets like toddlers having tantrums, their behavior at last Summer’s town hall meetings, the assaults on members of congress with whom they disagree, the nutty candidates they’ve produced, the creative interpretations of the laws and history of our country, the steady undercurrents of bigotry, racism, homophobia, etc. articulated by candidates claiming affiliation and finally the out-and-out extreme positions on social issues and policies articulated by their champions in the media .. Palin, Beck, Limbaugh et al. It’s small wonder that people are squeamish about being too tightly affiliated with this movement.
Too bad Pat Sajak isn’t running as a TEA party candidate. Writing in the National Review, Sajak asks a very valid question: “Should state workers be able to vote in state elections on matters that would benefit them directly?” I’m surprised the TEA party hasn’t already come up with this idea.
If you think about it, the main problem with the so called Tea Part is the same problem you have with the Democrat and Republican parties: someone is always asking (demanding) that you toe the party line and agree with the so called leaders of the party on everything.
Guess you could say all political parties have the same problem that all religions have. You are expected to check your brain at the door and buy into everything your “leaders” tell you to believe/do/vote.
Every time someone from any party says, “My fellow Americans,” what I hear is, “My fellow sheep.”
PNElba says:
October 14, 2010 at 9:23 am
Too bad Pat Sajak isn’t running as a TEA party candidate. Writing in the National Review, Sajak asks a very valid question: “Should state workers be able to vote in state elections on matters that would benefit them directly?” I’m surprised the TEA party hasn’t already come up with this idea.
Duh. Should the resident of any state or country be allowed to vote in elections where the outcome might benefit them directly? Should any member of Congress be allowed to vote where the outcome might benefit them directly? Should any candidate be allowed to vote in the election they are running in. Pat should stick to game shows. Last I heard the 15th Amendment was still in effect.
Amen to that John! “toddlers having tantrums” priceless. Rush and Beck fit the bill to a T. I would go further than “squeamish” though and say “nauseaus” instead.
Yeah Pat, why can’t Rush and Beck be deep thinkers like Michael Moore and Al Franken? Nausea is right…
you had me with you, brian, all the way with this essay. you were drawing me in with full agreement.
yes. this is the most accurate perspective yet on the TPers., i thought i read you clearly. made good sense.
and then came your last 12 words.
unless you meant that BO brought the (socialist) movement to the next level.
Buffoons abound on both ends of the spectrum, Bret.
And the biggest one of all is living at 1600 Pa. Ave, Wash. DC.
Never take advice from your opponents.
If the Republicans sweep in November why would they feel they have to change the message?
The people that seem to be worried about the radicalization of the Tea party movement and its impact on the Republican Party seem to be mainly people who vote for Democrats.
David Brooks? David Frum? It seems that intellectual Republicans are just as “worried about the radicalization of the Tea party movement and its impact on the Republican Party ” as Democrats are. More so probably, since they see their own party being hijacked by mob rule. I’d rather a civil discourse than a shouting exchange of escalating insults.
Mob rule? Are you serious? Show me the mobs Pat. I’ve seen the films of mobs of SEIU workers harassing TP meetings, beating black TP members etc., but I haven’t seen “mobs” in the various TP events. If anything I’ve seen peaceful, clean (no litter) groups of respectful citizens voicing their opinion. The only “mobs” I’ve seen have been those people who want to silence any dissent from King Barrys plans.
BTW- Nice elitist attitude with your “intellectual Republicans” remark. Only the special people should be running things and have any say, right?
I brought up “intellectual Republicans” and the two Davids as examples, in response to mervel’s post claiming that it was only those who vote Democrat that are worried about the T pat T movement.
I used the term “mob rule” because that is what comes to mind when I read of (and see on TV) the examples such as those put forth by John on OCt 14th.
As for an “elitist attitude” , if that means that I would rather have a civil discourse than an angry shouting match filled with snarky name calling and venom, then I’m elitist. That’s why I listen to NPR and PBS rather than Fox News.
I’m as uncomfortable with Michael Moore’s “in your face” biased diatribes as I am with Glenn Beck’s.
I am concerned with anti-intellectualism across the board in the US. I do think it is part of the Tea party movement to some degree it is also part of most of our modern culture unfortunately. What is really disturbing is that it has become hip to be ignorant to not enjoy science or math. There is still an incredible cultural bias against “geeks”, which is insane in the world in which we live today.
But I also think that there is an intellectual grounding for much of the tea party movement largely coming out of some of the Libertarian ideas and ideas surrounding Public Choice Economics and ideas surrounding the power of individual liberty in the American experiment.
I saw the same sort of irrational screaming and yelling at the anti-bush anti-Iraq war rallies.
Of course now the so called anti-war movement is silent even though we are still fighting two wars.
Politico reports that advisers to the main 2012 presidential contenders and other veteran Republican operatives reveal they have one mission in common: Stop Sarah Palin. Pickup this message at 214PM via Smirf etc. decoded 227PM
Obtained from reliable sources and yes it’s true Aliens have decided to cast their vote for the Tea party.The greys have reviewed the political issues of all the party’s and have agreed that those who have the tea party’s viewpoints are less likely to present issues that conflict with their globle view obstructions. Sometime soon after the midterm elections they will make themselves knowed but in the intermin they have left their sexuality concerns and viewpoints in sacred trust with the earthling Sara. All other concerns about the future have been stored in the secret and private volts of the A1 Limo service. Since my retirement my personal advisor in matters of this importance have been rendered to me from Horhay who is also a friend and my special ranch weed grower. Sincerely, your friend George
Jeffrey Skilling, the former Enron Corporation president, has one last, good chance to get out of prison soon. The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Houston will hear arguments today about how many, if any, of the 19 felony counts on which Mr. Skilling was convicted in 2006 should be overturned as a result of the landmark Supreme Court decision in his case. Please don’t worry Election Year Medicaid Medicare Inducement issues left open for November not openly discussed.Politics have gone from heated to man on fire thoughts. Also the Judicial dilemmas, since all are offically allowed to bear arms again, the big city Mayors are concerned about how the poor will be able to rearm themselves, and are looking for some type of financial relief from Federal State Medicaid programs to maintain their status quo.The higher courts face tough issues this term since making honest fraud legal, there agenda now turns toward making honest kickbacks and honest bribes equally as legal. This topic remains high as a shared issue by the medicaid medicare enrollment providers since they are looking to expand inducements past the complicated pregnancy stage.
The DOJ has serious concerns that if legalized marijuana in California for medical reasons could be used as a inducement or inticement to help secure new enrollments for the Federal State Medicare Medicaid programs.The State of California is concerned that if the Feds step up their effort in killing off the marijuana crops it could cause higher tax problems that effect Medicaid currently under consideration by the State ‘marijuana tax control board’. Limo drivers cancel their planned Medicaid Cuts DC rally and leave for California to protect this years crop. Wow, don’t think I would like to be in Politics for this years elections. Govenor Schwarzenegger indicated that if the Tea Partys membership keeps holding their rallies at our Marijuana burning fields they will have to be taxed for their free use of inhalants, prior to having them bused back to Arizona. Senator McCain wants the deportation of illegal Mexicans to stop immediatley claims their State has gone to POT and insists California return his landscapers at once.