Thread: GOP elite holds off the tea partiers

GOP elite holds off the tea partiers



By JAMES HOHMANN | 4/21/12 6:37 PM EDT

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Republican Party establishment has withstood the tea-party revolution.

The tricorne-hat wearing, Gadsden-flag waving insurgents were nowhere near the Republican National Committee’s annual meeting of state chairman, which wrapped up at a posh resort here Saturday afternoon.

Instead, veteran party leaders — who wore business suits even in the 100-degree heat — reigned supreme.

The 2012 meeting of the Republican national command shows just how little has actually changed in the Grand Old Party since the tea-party movement helped Republicans capture the U.S. House majority two years ago and announced that they were a powerful force in American politics.

While tea-party activists have won county chairmanships and seats on state central committees, few (if any) activists have clinched slots on the Republican Party’s 168-member governing committee. That’s not to say that tea-partiers have disappeared or that they won’t get their moment in the sun — but it may take years for them to climb the party ladder the same way as everyone else.

GOP elders sympathize with the movement’s ideas and want to channel whatever energy the decentralized groups offer for November. But when asked about the tea-party’s influence in interviews here, the movement was always spoken of in the third person and as one constituency in the larger Republican coalition, sort of like defense hawks or fiscal conservatives.

Many Republicans here said that tea-party activists now understand that things will run more smoothly if those with experience are in charge rather than those who put a premium on ideology over process.

“The important thing for any group in the party to understand…is that you need experience to govern,” said New Hampshire Republican Chairman Wayne MacDonald. “Everybody has to start somewhere. It’s just important they learn the mechanics of how the party operates…It doesn’t mean new ideas aren’t welcome.”

MacDonald, who has been active in his state’s politics for 36 years, became state chairman last September after the resignation of tea- party activist Jack Kimball, who drew lots of national attention when he won an upset victory as a political newcomer against the insider-backed candidate.

Kimball resigned just before a meeting in which the state executive committee would have removed him. The party lost special elections and struggled with fundraising under his watch. Many were offended that he signed a petition to Libertarian candidate on the 2012 ballot.

GOP veterans hold out Kimball as the cautionary tale.

“He was over his head, inexperienced and not qualified for the leadership role in an organization in which he never had participated,” said Phyllis Woods, New Hampshire’s outgoing national committeewoman. “It broke my heart. I knew when he was elected, he would need to network with a lot of people and get a lot of input. But egos get in the way, and it was just too steep a learning curve for him too soon.”

“He was very well-intentioned…right on the issues…but lacking any historical perspective for the party, lacking the organizational skills, lacking the knowledge of the mechanics of the party,” she added. “In other words, you can have the message. You have to have the network. You have to have the facility to get out the message.”

Kimball did not return a call for comment.

Read more: GOP elite holds off the tea partiers - James Hohmann - POLITICO.com

Dem and GOP are two heads of the same snake. JMO