Rand Paul Not An Anomaly: More Fringe Tea Party Candidates Set To Knock Off Favored GOP Candidates

[Ian David]

Rand Paul Not An Anomaly: More Fringe Tea Party Candidates Set To Knock Off Favored GOP Candidates

Last night, fringe tea party Senate candidate Rand Paul (R-KY) sailed to victory in his primary over Trey Grayson, the GOP candidate favored by Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell and much of the Republican establishment. Not only did heavyweight Republicans like Dick Cheney and Rudy Giuliani stump for Grayson, but shadowy GOP front groups, like the American Future Fund — which casts itself as a tea party group — ran harsh attack ads hitting Paul. Paul’s success comes shortly after tea party candidates defeated incumbent Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT) in the Utah primary, and tea party candidate Marco Rubio (R-FL) forced Charlie Crist out of the Republican Party.

Republican operatives orchestrated the tea party movement to lay the foundation for Republican electoral gains. However, the far right tea parties have been uncontrollable, demanding that Republican candidates support extreme positions like eliminating Social Security, Medicare, the Department of Education, and even the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Paul’s success has already sent ripples throughout the GOP establishment, with other ramifications in Kentucky and for upcoming GOP primaries:




More:
http://thinkprogress.org/2010/05/19/rand-paul-primaries/

[Vincardog]

1. Let them I want to run real Democrats against RW Tbags all day long

[Ikonoklast]

2. We are witnessing Frankenstein's Monster killing its creator.

I wonder if Dick Armey actually thought he could control what he created, once unleashed.



When elderly white Teabaggers finally realize these guys are deadly serious about taking Medicare and Social Security from them, it will be a giant wake-up call.

[spanone]

3. good...split all the rethug votes

[WeDidIt]

4. The Democrats need to push how the baggers are out to repeal the 17th amendment

and force the choosing of Senators into backroom political deals done behind closed doors for political favors.

The baggers hate Freedom.

[roguevalley]

5. Let them. did you notice that the dems turned out more votes for

their side of the ticket in kentucky than the republicans? so much for voter enthusiasm on their side.

[tabbycat31]

6. I hope it rings true in my district

My Democratic Congressman has two GOP opponents that will face each other in a few weeks in the primary (he also has a tea party backed Democratic primary opponent).

Of the 2 GOP challengers there's lunatic fringe teabagger and Mrs. Hedge Fund manager. I personally hope that teabagger sends Mrs. Hedge Fund and her 1.3 billion packing. It's a district gerrymandered for a Democrat.

[DFW]

7. This is not going to help us

The people who stand to lose their Medicare and Social Security will STILL vote Republican
because if they do not, they are convinced that their guns, money and religion will all be
stolen out from under them.

The fact that a Teabagger-controlled Senate would mean attempts from Capitol Hill to evict
plenty of them onto the streets where they can try to sell pencils to pay for food and medication
does not sink in to them. These people would have voted for Hitler for President in 1944 as long
as he ran on the Republican Party ticket, and they would do so again today, even if they were
Jewish. Logic and common sense have nothing to do with it. Guys like Frank Luntz have recognized
this phenomenon, and are are milking it dry. He doesn't care. Doing this has made him enough money
to retire to the south of Spain for the rest of his life, far away from the monsters he has created,
and the bigger one he is now trying to create.