For G.O.P., Tea Party Wields a Double-Edged Sword

[Francesca9]

Source: NY Times

National Tea Party groups are pouring money into Ms. O’Donnell’s campaign, while establishment Republicans are attacking her with more ferocity than they have shown toward the Democrat in the race, worried that Ms. O’Donnell is the bigger threat to the party’s winning the seat in November.

The battle in Delaware is just the latest reminder that as much as the Tea Party fervor is expected to help Republicans in November, it may also create problems for them — and opportunities for the Democrats.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/06/us/politics/06teaparty.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper

---

The Republicans see the TeaParty as a bigger threat this year than the Democrats. Interesting. The TeaParty did take down the GOP incumbent senator from Alaska... hmmnnn

[Francesca9]

1. A rare opportunity for the Democrats?

"In the 10th Congressional District in Illinois, the Tea Party may have created a rare opportunity for the Democrats to pick up a seat, helping Robert Dold win against a more moderate Republican in the primary."

It would be ironic if the TeaParty helps keep the House.

[ClassWarrior]

5. I think that irony will become reality... BUT...

...only if we work our boo-tays off for our Dem candidates over the next two months.

<cue the music and graphics> DECISION 2010 starts tomorrow, Francesca!

NGU!

[Crowman1979]

2. The tea party is more like a mentally ill person wielding a two-edge sword.

[AlinPA]

4. The problem is that they have 7 senate candidates leading in polls now.

[AlinPA]

3. We said that the teabagger primary winners in KY, CO, NV, AK, NV, PA, FL were

advantages for us, but they are all ahead in polls now. Is O'Donnell another teabagger "advantage"?

[jberryhill]

10. She's a hoot

She's run several times, and is well known to the vast majority of Delaware voters as a loon and habitual liar about her personal and campaign finances.

[cstanleytech]

15. Well in the long term they could well be "winners" for the democrats if the candidates

turn out to be either bad or even just completely fruit loops, time will tell.

[AlinPA]

17. Yes, and 6 years is a long time. But as you say if they turn out to be as bad

as they look now, we could get 7 seats from red states turned our way 6 years from now.

[cstanleytech]

26. Exactly.

Now what I would do if I were the dems is dont try to fight this current election to hard and let the republicans win it and then come 2012 and the time for Obamas re-election to help him win rub the republicans and the conservatives noses in any and every mistake these so called tea baggers make because I am willing to bet they will make plenty of them in those 2 years.

[Ruby the Liberal]

6. Forgive me for not being familiar with this race - but is a primary pending?

A primary this late in the game may be poison to the GOP ticket if they are poisoning their base.

[jberryhill]

9. Yes, the primary vote is on September 14

And it's been hilarious watching this one.

The Tea Party candidate is HILARIOUS.

She used to be an advocate against.... wait for it... masturbation.

[Ruby the Liberal]

11. Yikes!

Well, I guess its best to let them at it.

Seems a rather short election cycle though.

[jberryhill]

12. It's Delaware

You can meet everyone who lives here in a week.

It's only about 100 miles long and averages around 15 miles wide.

When NASCAR has a race in Delaware, a crowd of 1/3 the population of the state is present in the stands.

[no_hypocrisy]

7. What the real issue is: Tea Party winners won't necessarily follow orders

from the republican hierarchy (RNC) and are all individual loose cannons. They may share suspicion and animosity toward democrats and some "values" about culture and the economy, but that's about it.

Teabaggers can't be controlled by threats, money, or bombast.

[Francesca9]

8. The TeaParty isn't a real party - it is an attitude

TeaPartys have come and gone, but for a single election they can be important.

[AlinPA]

13. I can't see the difference between teabaggers and republicans- they are all the same.

[Francesca9]

16. Not all Democrats are happy Democrats

The Tea Party has a lot of Democrats.

I forget how many. I read the number and there are lots of Democrats.

Like I said, it isn't a real party.

[AlinPA]

19. They will vote 100% republican.

[Francesca9]

20. Why would Democrats vote 100% Republican?

Republicans don't vote 100% with their party, so why would Democrats in the Tea Party do this?

Most in the Tea Party don't like either party.

[AlinPA]

21. That's bullshit. They are all republicans.

[Francesca9]

22. Survey: Four in 10 Tea Party members are Democrats or independents

http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/polls/90541-survey-four-in-10-tea-party-members-dem-or-indie

[AlinPA]

23. Given their agenda and being followers of Beck and Fox "news" it is absurd

that they would ever vote for a Democrat.

[Skittles]

30. I agree

no real Dem would align themselves with that hatred and stupidity

[ThomThom]

24. I thought they were mostly libertarian which to me is an extreme

republicon. To the right of most of them. How could they be Democrats?

[cstanleytech]

18. We shall see.............

for all we know they could end up being just another extension of the GOP like fox news is and will take orders from the gop when the gop really needs them to like when it comes to passing or blocking legislation.

[karynnj]

14. They took down one in Utah too and chose nominees not favored by the party powers

in Colorado, Nevada and Kentucky.

[primavera]

25. Divide et impera

Tea baggers may be pissed at incumbents, but few among their looney tune ranks are the the sort that would ever have voted Demo anyway. They are, however, precisely the sort of wackos that would normally vote Repuke.

[Francesca9]

27. Read the link - 40% sometimes vote for Democrats

[primavera]

28. I did, but didn't see that figure anywhere

And I just went back and re-read it again to make sure and still don't see any such reference. Sorry, I must be going blind in my old age. Still, even if 40% might go Dem, the real question is how many might go Repuke. If the wackos cost Repukes more votes than Dems, that's still a good thing, no? And the Tea Baggers seem much more organically akin to Repuke ideals, i.e., eliminating Social Security, eliminating health care, eliminating education, that whole express train to the 14th century ideology, it makes intuitive sense that Tea Baggers are going to come from Repuke constituencies to a greater extent than from Dem constituencies.

[Francesca9]

29. Four in 10 Tea Party members are either Democrats or Independent

"Four in 10 Tea Party members are either Democrats or Independents, according to a new national survey."

Democrats and Independents by definition sometimes vote for Democrats.

Six of ten Teaparty members likely never will.