http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=14103 Santorum needn't have worried: In this year's contests, he's regularly drawn more support from Tea Party voters than Ron Paul, who has been described as the "intellectual godfather of the Tea Party movement." Exit polls show Santorum beating Paul among self-described Tea Party supporters in Iowa, South Carolina and Florida, trailing him only in independent-heavy New Hampshire and Nevada. "This idea that people should be left alone, be able to do whatever they want to do," Santorum complained to NPR in 2006, "that we shouldn't get involved in the bedroom, we shouldn't get involved in cultural issues... that is not how traditional conservatives view the world." End Quotes. Do the Paul voters believe they could support Santorum over Romney on issues that matter most to them ? Balancing a budget..a smaller budget..staying out of issues involving the bedroom... Santorum is on the record against libertarians. He is even on the record against tea party principles of economic issues first. IF PAUL was not there..you would vote for newt or Santorum.. instead of Romney ? Too bad..you might never get that chance..You focus only on the anti war ..pot legalization themes of Paul's election plank. Your forget Romney shares the Balanced budget and no tax pledge and his economic successes.. That Paul champions. newt and Santorum used government to get wealthy.. Romney did not..you need to realize he is not perfect..but a long ways better than what Santroum and newt represent. Paul cost Romney the MN vote..and gave Santorum the win.. Obama won also..The time to get over Paul is approaching. or suffer 4 more years of Obama and $ 4-5 dollar gas.
that's funny. The TEA Party doesn't even know what they stand for anymore. They're flocking back to their Republican establishment roots. Santorum > Romney anyway. As if that's saying much.
The Tea Party are simply just people that have a certain belief about how the government should run specifically in regards to finance. They have always thought this way and always will. Just because they currently have a label attached to them doesn't change who the people are. They will always be around. And I would also point out that its the republicans who flock to them since they are very active voters. They don't run their own candidates though they may come out as a group and support someone they feel meets their ideology. I'm basically a Tea Party person and I will never change the way I vote so how people can say they are falling apart is just plain nonsense.
My opp was about Santorum not endorsing the libertarian or tea party basic principle of Smaller government and less intrusion into our personal lives. The religious MORAL leg of the Republican party is winning the day. It remains to be said if Paul and Romney will let it continue. I dont think so.. Paul by staying in when it is obvious he is slitting votes away from Romney is helping Santorum and that religious leg. He is Hurting the Fiscal and moral leg by splitting that vote as well. Moral leg means more than being for GOD...it means being LEGAL as well. Santorum and newt get creamed by Obama on the legality of past political and money issues. The dems would have a field day with either one of them.. 700,000 voters cannot be wrong. THEY VOTED AGAINST Santorum in his last election...for a reason. ETHICS..as in MORAL leg of that stool.
If Romney can't handle a little surge by Paul than he will get crushed by Obama. He needs to man up and convince people he's the best choice and not whine that some other candidate is stealing votes.
I have Santorum as an "absolutely not". I started out saying no way to Romney or Newt but I might change my mind. Leaning a hair more towards Romney than Newt. We'll see what happens. Ron Paul 2012
the tea party was actually infiltrated by the establishment. for years and years it was all about true libertarianism, free markets etc. and ron paul was the figurehead. when it started to gain steam and become a threat to the establishment, they infected it. now a bunch of big government cronies claim to reprisent the tea party. In my opinion they did that to discredit the tea party because they are a threat.