To all of you out there who are convinced that the Tea Party movement is nothing but an organ of the Republican Party, a concoction to attack the Democratic Party and Congress, and the Obama Administration, the following video should go some way toward putting that lie to rest for good.
To be sure, the Tea Party is very much in opposition to the Democrats, Obama, and increased government size, power, and spending. But that is far and away from being the whole story. It also represents a struggle for the heart and soul of the Republican Party, a struggle which might in the long run be in some respects divisive.
Nowhere is this more true than in Kentucky, where there will be this year an election to fill the Senate seat of retiring GOP Senator Jim Bunning (one of the most conservative Senators). There are four candidates, two from each party. The Democratic primary is between current Lieutenant Governor Daniel Mongiardo (who ran a strong race against Bunning in 2004) and the current Kentucky State Attorney General Jack Conway.
The Republican race is between Rand Paul (son of Texas House of Representatives member and former presidential candidate Ron Paul), and current Secretary of State Trey Grayson.
Grayson is supported by the senior Senator from Kentucky, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and by other mainstream members of the Republican Party leadership.
Rand Paul, on the other hand, has the support of such luminaries as Sarah Palin-and the Tea Party movement.
Enter Doctor James Dobson of Focus On The Family, who initially supported Grayson. That is, he did, until he allegedly learned-according to him-that he had been lied to, that Rand Paul's views had been misrepresented to him, whereupon he switched his allegiance to Greyson.
It's really quite remarkable, as the implication here is that the Republican Party leadership is so desperate to defeat Paul-who is far ahead of Grayson in the polls-that they are willing to deceive a long-time prominent and influential ally and supporter in order to do so. Maybe their concern is fueled in part by worries Paul will not be able to win a general election match-up between Conway or Mongiardo. I think, however, there is a distinct possibility that just don't like the direction the Tea Party might take the Republican Party should they ever take control of it.
What you are seeing is the potential for a major split in the Republican Party somewhere down the road, much akin to the 1964 Goldwater debacle, when the party was also split between conservatives and moderates. This time, the result will only be different if the Tea party takes control, and the so-called "moderate" wing of the party relinquishes that control for the good of party unity. Because one way or another, that wing is going down. It is just up to them, do they want to go down as willing junior partners of a grassroots conservative victory movement, or do they just want to go down period. That's totally up to them, but one thing I know, the Bushes, McCains and McConnells of the GOP have had their day in the sun, and that sun is about to set.
