THE 2012 REPUBLICAN PRIMARIES are showing early signs of another
banner year for the Tea Party. The candidacies of Republican
insurgents such as Richard Mourdock, Josh Mandel, Deb Fischer, Ted
Cruz, and Mark Neumann follow the spirit of Senators Marco Rubio,
Mike Lee, Pat Toomey, and Rand Paul—who each defeated establishment
forces in their 2010 senatorial races. Meanwhile, Wisconsin
Governor Scott Walker, who enacted ambitious reforms of
public-sector unions in his state, trounced his recall opponent by
a seven-point margin.
In just a few short years, the Tea Party has evolved from small,
disparate groups scattered all around the country into a
full-fledged movement with considerable influence. Tea Party
candidates are no passing fad; they are trailblazers of a new,
lasting political reality.
For too long, politicians got away with proclaiming the value of
fiscal responsibility on the campaign trail without ever acting on
it once they were in Washington. But thanks to the Internet, that’s
no longer an option. Activists around the country have ready access
to politicians’ voting records, speeches, and statements with just
a few clicks of a mouse. It’s nearly impossible to mislead voters
these days. That’s why it’s no longer acceptable for candidates to
simply mouth conservative rhetoric. Their records must back it up.
For that reason, many longtime incumbents, whose walk didn’t match
their talk, had to go. They couldn’t pass muster in an age of
transparency.
The pundit class often laments the lack of bipartisanship in
Washington and wistfully recalls the good old days when Republicans
and Democrats would work together to bring home the bacon and
plunge our nation deeper into debt. Times have changed. Jay Cost
made an astute observation in his essay “The Politics of Loss” in
National Affairs. He said that the stunning economic
growth in the postwar era “liberated policy makers from having to
make any hard choices. The people could have guns, butter, and low
taxes—all thanks to a private economy that seemed to grow
regardless of what government did.”
Today, however, the private economy is pinned under the jackboot
of big government. There’s no more room for compromise. When
Republicans and Democrats worked together in the past, the result
was almost always a bigger, more expensive government. As a result,
government now controls our health care, our energy, our education,
our transportation, our mortgages, our banks, and countless other
things. The debt is now bigger than our gross domestic product.
It’s time for toughness. Merely raising the subject of
eliminating a single government program provokes ridicule and anger
from any number of constituencies. Those who speak frankly and
honestly about the decisions that must be made to save our
entitlement programs can expect to be labeled in the crudest terms
by the Democrat Party and its assorted special-interest groups.
But anyone who looks at the numbers can see that the real
radicals are the ones running Washington right now. The creation of
our $15 trillion debt is the single most extreme action ever
undertaken by the U.S. government. Thankfully, we know what the
answers are. Republicans have offered numerous ways to shrink the
budget, empower states, reduce the tax burden on Americans, and
provide the certainty needed for the economy to flourish once
again.
The Tea Party has provided a much-needed infusion of
accountability to ensure that the GOP champions the values that
have made our nation prosperous. The genius of the Tea Party is
that it is not a single group that may one day be corrupted. Its
allegiance lies with the Constitution and our founding principles,
not with a person or party.
With the Tea Party’s backing, Republicans should have the
temerity to offer voters a clear and bold choice between the
Republican and Democrat agendas. It’s not a question of left or
right, or red or blue. It’s a matter of whether this country
succeeds or fails.
That’s why I’m laser focused on retaking the Senate with Tea
Party candidates who are committed to repealing Obamacare,
balancing the budget, securing our border, stopping the bailouts,
and enacting pro-growth, freedom-based policies that will get
Americans back to work.
This is the new reality. Politicians who fail to recognize it
are certain to become relics of the past.
Our nation’s survival depends on it.
