I’m finding rather amusing the Tea Party groups claiming credit for anything that goes right despite the fact they have demonstrated no ability to stop anything or to elect candidates. Today’s version:
You knew this was coming: A tea party group is patting itself on the back for pushing U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak into retirement.
So will Stupak be the first “victim” of the Party of Angry Americans when it comes to the 2010 election cycle?
The Tea Party Express, through political director Bryan Shroyer, on Friday took lots of credit for getting the Michigan Democrat to step aside.
The thing is, there’s no evidence they were actually a threat to Stupak. Republicans have a far better chance winning that seat without Stupak.
Then they took credit for Scott Brown. You know, the guy who insists the Tea Party wasn’t involved in his election and is pro-choice despite a bunch of right wing blogs not knowing it.
Funny enough, they aren’t taking credit for Proposition A in Saint Louis County. It was targeted by Tea Party national favorites Bill Hennessey and Dana Loesch who claimed, per standard operating procedures, that the rich powerful people were in cahoots to drain every day people’s wallets to fund mass transit. They specifically lied claiming Washington University was getting a sweetheart deal by enrolling in a program to provide students and employees with passes even though any business can enroll in the program.
Results: 63 percent for the tax.
In Illinois, there is nothing Mark Kirk could do to stop them from capping his winning total in the GOP primary at 57 percent of the vote.
It’s a powerhouse I’m telling you…
Loud obnoxious people who are willing to interrupt public events, make ludicrous claims about policy, and claim to be powerhouses electorally does not make them so. They received incredible coverage for a march in DC that was much smaller than a pro-immigration march just a few months later.
We see the same thing with Jack Roeser and Illinois Review. They make lots of noise, but what do they accomplish? Nothing. Roeser hates Bill Brady despite ideological affinity Who won the Governor’s primary? Bill Brady. Though Roeser has found something in common with Jim Edgar–hating Bill Brady.
Illinois Review thinks Mark Kirk is a commie earth-worshiping, baby-killing devil, but he overwhelmingly won the GOP Primary.
So what does the wingnut faction have to continue to justify their treatment as some serious faction? Lot’s of press releases and a pro-choice GOP Senate candidate who used to have a strong environmental record, doesn’t hate gays, and hates guns. What are they going to do about it? Nothing.
Unless you count whining.
It’s a winning formula: Direct enough loud, obnoxious, occasionally criminal abuse at someone and you can take credit for any bad thing that happens to him or her.
Amendment to above: Except for actual violence or, God forbid, murder. Then you backpedal as fast as you can.