Since its ascendance as a political force, the Tea Party has drawn its power from exactly the tactics the establishment used on Tuesday. The far right has thrown most of its energies into Republican primaries; it has loudly refused to support candidates that didn't meet its standards; it has threatened to sit out elections featuring an "impure" nominee; and it has been perfectly willing to lose seats for the party if that was the price of getting its way. Whether knocking off respected incumbents like Dick Lugar and Bob Bennett or elevating untested candidates like Sharron Angle and Christine O'Donnell, the Tea Party's M.O. has been to pour resources into draining, quixotic intraparty battles, even if they came at the expense of general-election victories. Many conservatives still argue that Mitt Romney lost the 2012 presidential election because he wasn't forcefully conservative enough, causing an unenthusiastic GOP base to stay home. Like the establishment Limbaugh describes, they're gratified by losing if it bolsters their theory.
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posted 3820 days ago