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Hooray For Utah; Boo For
Indiana
By Chuck Baldwin
May 11, 2010
The Tea Party in Utah flexed its muscle over the
weekend and booted longtime establishment
Republican senator, Bob Bennett, from office.
Hooray! (Now, Arizona, please do America a favor
and show John McCain the door!) Unfortunately,
Tea Party activists were unsuccessful in Indiana,
as longtime establishment Republican, Dan Coats,
defeated the principled patriot, John Hostettler.
Boo!
Predictably, mainstream Republican spokesmen are
lamenting Bennett's ouster, saying Bennett was a
true conservative, touting an 80% ranking in the
American Conservative Union (ACU) index. However,
the ACU index is completely irrelevant to the
true measure of a congressman's fidelity to
constitutional government. The index that people
should pay attention to is the Freedom Index
(formerly called the Conservative Index) at The
New American magazine. This index is far and away
more accurate in determining a congressman or
senator's fidelity to limited government. In this
index, Bennett's latest rating was a pathetic
50.
Bennett needed to go; the good people of Utah did
America a great favor by showing him the door. I
trust and pray that this is an indication of how
the November elections will fare. I would have
been extremely optimistic that this might be the
case, except for the miserable election results
recorded in Indiana. Dan Coats is merely another
establishment neocon in the similitude of Bob
Bennett.
In the 105th Congress, Coats' final rating was a
dismal 55 in The New American's index. On the
other hand, John Hostettler's last ranking stood
at 85. Hostettler deserved the enthusiastic
support of Tea Partiers throughout Indiana. It is
tragic that he lost to someone such as the
neocon, Dan Coats. Therefore, what was gained in
Utah was lost in Indiana.
And this is going to be the danger for the Tea
Party movement this year: If Tea Party activists
do not truly understand the issues of limited
government, or if they are fooled by
establishment politicians, or if they fail to
materialize at the polls on election day, all
that will happen is one Big Government neocon
will be replaced with another Big Government
neocon. And, as Sonny and Cher used to sing, "The
Beat Goes On."
Proponents of limited government already had a
setback in Texas when establishment neocon Rick
Perry defeated Debra Medina. Obviously, Tea Party
favorite Sarah Palin campaigned hard for Perry,
and another Tea Party "leader," Glenn Beck, did a
hatchet job on Medina on his TV show,
characterizing her has a "Truther" (with the
associated vitriolic condemnation that such a
person must be awful). Now, Texas is stuck with
the same old same old establishment neocon.
This is why I again warn Tea Partiers to be very
cautious of Palin and Beck. They promote limited
government on one hand and then turn around and
promote Big Government candidates on the other
hand. If Tea Partiers do not grow a large head of
discernment quickly, Washington insiders will
quickly neuter both their voices and their
votes.
Perhaps the biggest threat to the Tea Party
movement is Newt Gingrich. Be alert, Tea
Partiers: Gingrich is not a friend to limited
government. He is a wolf in sheep's clothing. He
proved that in 1995 when he (almost
single-handedly) destroyed the Conservative
Revolution of 1994. He will do the same to the
Tea Party movement in 2010, if he is given the
opportunity. Avoid him like the plague!
There are scores (probably hundreds) of great
constitutionalist candidates running for State
and federal offices this year. It is critical
that Tea Partiers learn who they are and turn out
in force to support them in the various primary
elections. If we wait until the general elections
in November, most of the good candidates will
already have been defeated, and we will be left
with the same old choice between Tweedledee and
Tweedledum. That was a big problem in Indiana:
voter turnout was anemic.
Believe me, Big Government pariahs are watching
the elections of 2010 intently. By electing solid
constitutionalists en masse (at both the State
and federal levels) this year, Tea Partiers could
literally ignite a modern revolution--a
revolution of freedom and constitutional
government rivaling the Tea Party of 1773--that
could continue right on through the 2012
elections.
On the other hand, if establishment types such as
Gingrich, Coats, Perry, McCain, etc., are allowed
to beguile Tea Partiers, the revolution for
limited government will be dead by midnight on
November 2. Furthermore, it is extremely
important that Tea Partiers not be conned by the
major media into neglecting their State
elections. Electing principled constitutionalists
to State office is probably more important than
who we elect to federal office. State sovereignty
and freedom issues are mushrooming all over
America, and truly our liberties will ultimately
be won or lost at the State level.
The elections in Utah and Indiana send mixed
signals. While Utah heralds great hope, Indiana
portends more Big Government--all the Tea Party
hype notwithstanding. Which Tea Party will show
up next time? It's anyone's guess. All I know is,
the stakes could not be higher. Whichever way the
elections go in 2010 will probably determine the
rise or fall of freedom in America.
I pray the Tea Party of 2010 is worthy of the Tea
Party of 1773.
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(c) Chuck Baldwin
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