This is not intended to be a "sour grapes" rant but rather, an analysis of the cracks in a so-called "grassroots" movement.
Fanny and I attended all three major Tea Parties in Nevada including the "Showdown in the Desert" near Searchlight, Harry Reid's hometown. All were well-attended by a cross-section of working Americans energized by the failures of an unqualified, incompetent President and his sycophantic Congress. Three cheers for the Tea Party Express! Or maybe not...
Fast forward to the primaries in Nevada. We gave financial support to our candidate's campaign and fully expected him to win the Republican nomination as he had announced at a Tea Party and held the same beliefs and principles espoused by the Tea Party organizers. Out of nowhere, an endorsement of Sharron Angle by the Tea Party Express leadership pushed her over the top leaving us disappointed and completely puzzled as to WHY that endorsement materialized out of thin air.
We'll never know for sure and this is speculation and because I'm invoking Fanny here, I'll probably avoid some (but not all) comments about my personal misogyny. We both recall, at the last two Tea Parties, that there was emphasis on women. In fact, many media outlets trotted out female "leaders" in reportage of the events. This led us to the conclusion that there is a Tea Party bias toward women. Sarah Palin, a Tea Party icon, endorsed the RINO John McCain. Sure, she had an obligation to him but there goes those principles out the door since McCain is among the worst flip-floppers on important issues like immigration, campaign finance reform ad nauseam.
The facts speak for themselves: Danny Tarkanian clobbered Harry Reid in early polling. Hell, an overripe avocado would have beaten Harry Reid. It took the Tea Party Express to make it a race by nominating a bumbling, ill-spoken woman who might just snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. The obvious reasons were that she was a female and had actually won a seat whereas Tarkanian had only lost his previous run for some obscure office.
Tea Party activists should remain suspicious of Tea Party leaders who insist they aren't leaders at all. They've tasted power and they are willing to exert inappropriate influence which may lead to their own downfall before they are able to realize the change they promote.
We'll vote for Angle but if she loses, the blame falls on the California based Tea Party Express and their non-leadership. Sharron Angle's campaign was sloppy from the beginning and remains a morass of classless, hangers-on fighting a skilled, albeit crooked politician.
Memo to the Tea Party: Choose wisely.
