Hooray For Utah; Boo For Indiana
By Chuck Baldwin
May 11, 2010


This column is archived at
http://chuckbaldwinlive.com/home/?p=1534


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

NOTE TO THE READER:

Chuck Baldwin is a syndicated columnist, radio broadcaster, author, and
pastor dedicated to preserving the historic principles upon which America
was founded. He was the 2008 Presidential candidate for the Constitution
Party. He and his wife, Connie, have been married for 37 years and have 3
children and 7 grandchildren. See Chuck's complete bio at:

http://chuckbaldwinlive.com/home/?page_id=6.