Tea Party-backed freshmen face scrutiny

By Alan Gomez, USA TODAY

Updated 12m ago

WASHINGTON – Donna McClure is in a tough position.

The Tea Party leader in Corpus Christi, Texas, really likes Rep. Blake Farenthold, a surprise winner in 2010 when he unseated a 28-year incumbent as part of a wave of freshmen that helped reclaim the House of Representatives for the GOP.
But then he voted to increase the nation's debt ceiling, which members of the Tea Party fought hard to oppose. He voted for multiple short-term spending plans that the Tea Party felt didn't cut enough federal spending. And just this month, he supported the National Defense Authorization Act, which McClure said she feels infringes too much on Americans' civil liberties.
"He's a really good guy. I think he's worked really hard. I know it's tough being a freshman up there and he's a vast improvement on what we had before," said McClure, 47, a registered nurse. "But we're a little disappointed, obviously. If they came up with somebody who would do a more conservative job and stay closer to the Constitution, I'd vote for somebody else."
McClure echoes the conflicted sentiment of many local Tea Party groups as the freshman class they helped get elected finishes its first full year in Washington.

As soon as last year's elections were over, Tea Party groups immediately warned the first-time Republicans that they would face challenges in the 2012 GOP primaries if they didn't stick to the defining principles of the movement: fiscal responsibility, limited government and a strict adherence to the Constitution.
Many Tea Party groups urged members of Congress to vote against the debt-ceiling increase, and any budget plan that didn't contain massive cuts in federal spending or a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution.
And while only one Republican has filed to run against any of the 16 freshman members of the House Tea Party Caucus — Farenthold is facing a Republican challenger — that could change as registration deadlines approach in the coming months.
Farenthold admits he was "overly optimistic" when he arrived in Washington in January, not realizing how difficult it would be to quickly change the direction of the federal government, even with the numbers and mandate his freshman colleagues brought with them. He said he's been influenced by the consensus-building abilities of House Speaker John Boehner and his leadership team, and the realization that it's better to make some progress than none at all.
"I've become a lot more pragmatic," Farenthold said. "And I'm not sure I like that in myself."
Some members have resisted that change.
Four South Carolina GOP freshmen — Reps. Jeff Duncan, Trey Gowdy, Mick Mulvaney and Tim Scott— have voted together to oppose some of Boehner's proposals, including the debt-ceiling increase.
"I guess 'lucky' is the term," said Mike Schwartz of the Charleston Tea Party when asked to describe how South Carolina conservatives feel about their freshmen. "Those guys are pretty much in lockstep."
Don Forward of the Titusville (Fla.) Patriots was disappointed that freshman Rep. Sandy Adams voted for the short-term spending plans that he felt didn't do enough to reduce the budget. But he described those votes as small disagreements that haven't affected Adams' appeal among conservatives.
"I haven't heard anything about trying to replace her," Forward said.
Rep. Jeff Landry, a Republican freshman whose Louisiana district covers much of the state's southern coast, counts himself among the "40 to 60 crazies" who have held strong.
He said he's felt the pressure from House leadership and lobbying groups to minimize some of the deep budget cuts that he and his more conservative colleagues have been pushing for. "We had to sew our arms back to our shoulders," he said of the pressure he and his classmates felt this year.
But Landry largely stuck to the Tea Party line — voting against the debt-ceiling increase and other budget bills — as he saw other freshmen falling in line with leadership.
"What you found was that a lot of our freshman colleagues felt as though they kind of had to go along in the budget process in order to ultimately get what they wanted," Landry said. "As the process worked out, they started to see that maybe those decisions may not have been the right ones."
Now those that ended up voting with House leadership are starting to see a blowback in their home districts.
Ellen Cole, a supporter of Florida Rep. Allen West, said she still believes West is capable of flying the Tea Party banner in Washington. But she said his votes to increase the debt ceiling, for large budget bills and the Defense Authorization Act have tested her patience.
"Alan always came across as someone who had a backbone, and that's why we loved him so much," said Cole, an active participant with Concerned Citizens of Pompano Beach. "But if you're going to be a compromiser, you're not on our side."
Some freshman such as Farenthold, Landry and West also face the added difficulty of newly-drawn congressional districts that will either eliminate their districts entirely or water down the conservative majority in them.
Dan Triplett, founder of the Mississippi Gulf Coast 912 Project, holds little hope for Rep. Steven Palazzo, a freshman who's voted largely with House leadership. Triplett said he flirted with the idea of running against Palazzo in 2012, but decided against it and instead is hoping someone else steps up to challenge Palazzo.
"We kind of pulled all our hair out at this point and there's nothing left to pull," Triplett said. "I'm sure the Republican establishment is pretty happy with (Palazzo). But I would love to see somebody run against him who's closer to our philosophy, not a go-along guy. I just don't know if that's there right now."
West and Palazzo did not respond to requests for comment.

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