The shocking, unexpected victory of Christine O’Donnell over Mike Castle for the GOP Senate nomination in Delaware last night had the effect of causing disarray within the Republican party establishment!
While conservative commentators, such as Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Sean Hannity hailed her victory, the loser of the election, Mike Castle, refused to endorse her, and there was a stunned silence and then slow reaction of support by GOP leaders such as Senator John Cornyn, the head of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, a committee that has seen eight of its preferred choices be rejected by voters, including Charlie Crist in Florida, Lisa Murkowski in Alaska, Mike Castle in Delaware, Rob Simmons in Connecticut, Jane Norton in Colorado, Bob Bennett in Utah, Sue Lowden in Nevada, and Trey Grayson in Kentucky!
Instead, we have as candidates those favored by the Tea Party Movement, many of them coming across as loony and extremist! The question is whether Marco Rubio in Florida, Joe Miller in Alaska, Christine O’Donnell in Delaware, Linda McMahon in Connecticut, Ken Buck in Colorado, Mike Lee in Utah, Sharron Angle in Nevada, and Rand Paul in Kentucky can win those Senate seats, and if they do, how much of a headache they will create for the Republican Senate leadership, headed by Mitch McConnell!
And to top it off, Karl Rove, who helped to make George W. Bush President, made it clear that he did not support Christine O’Donnell, who he stated lacked the character and honesty and background needed to be a United States Senator! This has led to outrage by conservative commentators, and makes clear the disarray that exists, and is likely to lead to the defeat of many of these loony candidates!
The Republican Party is in the midst of a crisis that could very well lead to them NOT GAINING many seats in the Senate, and far fewer seats in the House than many polls have projected!
Anything can happen in the next seven weeks, but it is not time for anyone to feel assured that the GOP is about to gain control of either house of Congress!