ClydeR
02-18-2010, 06:52 PM
I never thought I would see the day when Karl Rove would outright reject the sage advice of Sarah Palin. Palin, you will recall, said that the Republican Party should merge with the Tea Party. In a Wall Street Journal column that was clearly aimed at blunting Palin's merger recommendation, Rove called the Tea Party "rugged populism." Some of what Rove said, which I will not quote below, was unflattering. Although he chose his words carefully, it was clear that he fears Tea Party members. He should be fearless, like Palin.
What these people have in common is a deep concern about the future of the country that their children and grandchildren will inherit. Many are also considering the next steps for their movement and often conflicted about its political course.
My advice to them is to keep their distance from any single party and instead influence both parties on debt, spending and an over-reaching federal government. Allowing third-party movements to co-opt the tea partiers' good name, which is happening in Nevada, will only serve to elect opponents of the tea party philosophy of low-taxes and fiscal restraint. It could also discredit the tea party movement.
More... (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703444804575071291097797862.html?m od=rss_Today%27s_Most_Popular)
The GOP is also better off if it foregoes any attempt to merge with the tea party movement.
Palin is in the middle of the spectrum of opinion about how Republican leaders think their party should relate to the Tea Party. At the opposite end from Rove's complete separatism is Sen. Orin Hatch, who warned (http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14423113) the Tea Party yesterday that they must support Republican candidates, instead of supporting their own candidates.
On this issue, Palin makes the most sense. Come to think of it, she makes the most sense on most issues.
What these people have in common is a deep concern about the future of the country that their children and grandchildren will inherit. Many are also considering the next steps for their movement and often conflicted about its political course.
My advice to them is to keep their distance from any single party and instead influence both parties on debt, spending and an over-reaching federal government. Allowing third-party movements to co-opt the tea partiers' good name, which is happening in Nevada, will only serve to elect opponents of the tea party philosophy of low-taxes and fiscal restraint. It could also discredit the tea party movement.
More... (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703444804575071291097797862.html?m od=rss_Today%27s_Most_Popular)
The GOP is also better off if it foregoes any attempt to merge with the tea party movement.
Palin is in the middle of the spectrum of opinion about how Republican leaders think their party should relate to the Tea Party. At the opposite end from Rove's complete separatism is Sen. Orin Hatch, who warned (http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14423113) the Tea Party yesterday that they must support Republican candidates, instead of supporting their own candidates.
On this issue, Palin makes the most sense. Come to think of it, she makes the most sense on most issues.