The Tea Party remains enigmatic both to right and left. It has power. . . er, no it doesn't. It's a flash in the pan. No wait, its power is enduring and is reshaping the Republican Party to this day. To this observer, there was no Presidential candidate, who was fully embraced by the Tea Party movement, until now. Herman Cain and Michelle Bachmann had short shelf lives. Rick Perry's dreadful debate performances sank him as well. Newt Gingrich hardly bowled over Tea Party types once it became clear he profited handsomely from lobbying of Big Pharma and Hospital conglomerates. And contrary to Mr. Green's premise, Santorum's social conservatism was not that attractive to Tea Party types, given his own K Street lobbying and Pro Big Labor history. Ironically, Romney captured support from Tea party faves Bob MacDonald, Kelly Ayotte, Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan, Ron Johnson and Nikki Haley, among others. The activists are disappointed, somewhat, in Romney, but he has campaigned as a conservative, while Mr. Obama IS campaigning as a left wing loon. Tea Partiers will complete the tasks begun in 2010 and drive the statists from office, with Mitt Romney as standard bearer. Who would have thunk it?

We don't need the Tea Party, our government is very fiscally responsible. Once they pass the Buffett Rule all will be well.

I disagree completely, and believe Romney can easily represent the values and views of the Tea Party. Recall, the Tea Party delivered to the nation a Republican congress in 2010, because it represented the outrage the nation felt as Obama forced an unwilling public to swallow his "affordable care act". That same type of outrage may come back, as the election becomes a referendum on this president, and his sorry record. NEW PARAGRAPH: Here is my prediction: If the Supreme Court upholds the mandate, and Obamacare survives the court challenge, Romney will win in a landslide. The Tea Party passion will awaken in the electorate, and the results will be similar to 2010.

The tea bag party never had the influence they wanted us to believe they had. They did not hand the house to the republicans; they TOLD us over and over that was their influence. In reality they don't seem to be much better organized than Occupy does. There is a place for these fools, but it isn't the republican party and it may not even be America. They need to split away from the republicans before they will be regarded seriously.

There is no "Tea Party" - just a shrinking minority of right-wing bullies left over from the failed presidency of George Bush who despise most of their fellow Americans. If we let these incompetent clowns back into office, they'll ruin the economy like Bush & Co. did, and we'll be dragged into another Middle East war (against Iran) when the neocons take over foreign policy.

The only influence the Tea Party really had was a pathetically low voter turnout in the off year election. A phenomenon that has roiled American politics for years. The electorate in Presidential years turns out votes to go a certain direction and then when this needs to be reinforced everyone stays home because they already elected a President. As if a Pres. was all that mattered. Here in Florida I've met many an ex- Tea Partier with their minds full of nostrums and slogans representing absolutely nothing. They wanted their government back, they wanted to cut spending. Then when I meet them on the golf course it's, "Did you see Ryan wants to end Medicare", I'm voting for Obama. That's a good part of your Tea Party, the rest is made up of whacked out libertarians, racists and folks who just like to dress up in costumes.

Well, since no one seems to be talking about the end of the Santorum campaign, I'll just add that I'm very happy to finally see this blowhard go away and God-willin' he'll be out of the public eye for good.

The US is a "center-right" country. Not Far Right and really, not even "Moderate Right." It is unreasonable to believe any Republican candidate who is Far Right (whether on fiscal matters or religious matters) would have any chance to winning sufficient States to become president. Candidates can not expect to "move the country" to their views. I am very sorry about Santorum's daughter's illness but I am thrilled he is not going to be president.

People found out the "tea party" had more in common with "Alice in Wonderland" than 1776.

The portrayal of Romney as sober,competant,good at business and management is very misleading. He is so in terms of Plutocracy but not Democracy. Remember,he relied on 100's of millions in taxpayers' money for the Utah Olympics, cost overuns on the Big Dig are burdening MA taxpayers still,burdening the MBTA among other areas. His Business acumen has been of the Vulture Capitalist variety. His fund raising and management skills are on display now for his campaign.He is clearly an advocate of Plutocracy.

The last paragraph says it all. Good riddance to the T party, but like a persistent infection, some of the irritants remain and will take time to completely eliminate. Maybe never. Sort of like shingles. Nevertheless, the House T-party members continue to hold Boehner hostage, as they have for years, to preserve the impression that Republicans are, down deep, super-conservative patriots interested more in deficit reduction than politics. Who believes this crap? When oft-repeated mantras... make Obama a one-term president, support no Democratic programs, kill Obamacare... are familiar to us, it's difficult to believe politics has been ignored. The T-party gladly jumps on the birther bandwagon, Christian roots, white conservatism and socialism. What junk! Personally, I think Santorum was too extreme for the country. With Romney, at least the margin of defeat by President Obama will be smaller, the T-party notwithstanding.

Newt's still alive and can still deliver a few embarrassments before the anointing of the well-coiffed one. The Tea Party though largely co-opted at this point by the radical right arose as movement disgusted with entrenched power (though they wouldn't use those terms). Obama could have created his own version of a "tea party" but he focused on working within the existing power structures and kind of lost the "movement" angle to his appeal (i.e. You don't transform anything by talking to same old folks about the same old things) I don't think average Americans think of them selves as either "right" "left" or "center"- those are false choices imposed by the unimaginative members of the political class - they just want to the throw the bums out and have a government that seems responsive. As things have got worse, its natural to want to blow things up. The worst thing that happened to the Tea Party was getting some of their own elected and turned into targets of discontent.

the centrist always wins. The key in this election is to show how far left Obama is

The Tea Party is just ordinary Americans who are fed up, and who think $16 trillion in debt passed on to future generations is a bad idea. Anyone here doesn't fit that description?

Hope and change has been replaced by The Buffet Rule and "Ann Romney hasn't worked a day in her life". Genius! Obama will lose 40 States, as the wheels are falling off this campaign bus faster than the deficit rising and Medicare becoming insolvent.

"Though the Tea Party is best known for its libertarian economic views, an analysis last year by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life found that Tea Party supporters also hold strongly conservative opinions about issues like abortion and gay marriage." Translation: the tea party and the drooling morons love them some freedom - but when it comes to granting others freedom, they start shrieking about their religious liberties coming first and tie themselves in all sorts of knots trying to explain why only THEY are entitled to any actual freedom. By the way - sorry, "Barb" - you're not "ordinary Americans who are fed up"; you're just another incarnation of the same old, same old sniveling right-wing crybabies braying about the evils of instrusive government social programs while meanwhile insisting the rich/corporations/polluters/offshorers get the world handed to them on a silver platter. As always, the rich are obviously the ones pulling your strings so please spare us the nonsense about your being part of the 99%. 16 trillion being passed on? If it was spent on military and wars you'd have absolutely no problem with that - period. It's because you're convinced it's being spent on "undeserving people" that you howl about it.

I am always amused by those who hate Obama who rant on about his upcoming destruction at the hands of Mr. Romney. Frankly I don't care who wins as I worry more about who controls the House, who holds the levers of power in the Senate than I do who is President. Yet I must point out to the crazies, current polling, which one must admit is early in the cycle, shows a massive defeat for Romney. Even at this point electorally speaking Obama has 280 in his column or leaning towards his column. Mitt 180. Will it hold, depends upon what happens in the world. If things stay status quo hate to break the bad news zealots, but Mitt will get killed. But then even the Republicans know it that's why the distance. They didn't want Mitt why should anyone else?

I don't know mreilly; how is it that he thinks he knows me? This is not complicated: the Tea Party contains fed-up people from all parts of the political spectrum, who agree on fiscal concerns. This does not include mreilly, who apparently thinks $16 trillion in debt on future generations is OK.

Tea Parties are for little girls and their imaginary friends.