Talk of GOP primaries follows 'fiscal cliff' vote
Source: Associated Press
DES MOINES, Iowa - Republicans in Congress who took the politically risky step of voting to raise taxes now find themselves trying to fend off potential primary challenges next year from angry conservatives.
These lawmakers wasted little time in attempting to deliver an explanation that would be acceptable to the tea party and the GOP's right flank, and, perhaps, insulate themselves from a re-election battle against a fellow Republican. They've started defending last week's vote as one that preserves tax cuts for most Americans, while also promising to fight for spending cuts in upcoming debates over raising the nation's borrowing limit.
"In the end, he ensured that over 99 percent of Kentuckians will not pay higher income taxes," Mitch McConnell's campaign wrote in an email message to Kentucky voters the day after the Senate Republican leader supported the measure.
It was the first time in two decades that a significant number of Republicans voted for a tax increase: 33 senators and 85 representatives, who broke with the House GOP majority to support the bill that averted the "fiscal cliff" but raised taxes on upper incomes.
Read more: http://www.newsday.com/news/nation/talk-of-gop-primaries-follows-fiscal-cliff-vote-1.4410170
The one thing this article does not mention is that a lot of the support for threatened primaries is from corporate backed astroturf groups like Freedom Works and Club for Growth. If the extreme right wing was not bankrolled by millions of dollars, these extremists would simply be unable to win any elections.
= new reply since forum marked as read
