The Occasional Observer

The tea party-backed, Sarah Palin-endorsed insurgent candidates are starting to chap my posterior. I'm not weighing in on the merits. I'm sure Lamongtane and O'Donnell are perfectly good conservatives with whom I probably agree on most issues. And perhaps they will be more reliable conservatives than Castle or Ayotte.

But Castle and Ayotte are both brand name GOP politicians with a good reputation, who have won state wide elections previously. Both have been polling ahead of their Dem opponent all cycle long. And both seemed likely to win and create GOP pickups in the Senate.

And now, both insurgent GOP candidates, who have basically come out of nowhere to be polling in a dead heat with the leaders, may win the nomination. And both Palinistas trail the Dems in statewide polls. Just like in Colorado, Nevada, and Kentucky, where mainstream GOP candidates were likely to win, and now tea party candidates are either fighting uphill (NV) or in a dogfight (CO, KY). In DE and NH, the tea party candidates face even worse prospects.

I feel like the perfect is starting to become the enemy of the good.