There is the term RINO for "Republican in name only." We need a new term for people like columnist Peggy Noonan, the Conservatives Desperately Seeking Approval from The Other Side. Today, she offers her advice on the Lugar-Mourdock race.
Let's wade into an argument, and on what may well be the losing side.
One more Lugar-Mourdock difference:
Senator Dick Lugar still won’t say whether he’ll support state treasurer Richard Mourdock if he wins the Republican primary on May 8. My repeated requests for comment on this topic have been rebuffed or evaded by the Lugar camp.
[. . .]
It puts a strain on the whole family when Grampy gets grumpy, but, hey, it's a natural thing. A Journal & Courier columnist spots "Richard Lugar on an unfamiliar low road":
Lugar's guys ask whether the state treasurer, who keeps gaining in the polls ahead of the May 8 primary, is: "Incompetent? Careless? Tax Cheat?"
Can the Tea Party beat Dick Lugar? Yes, it's quite possible, says Allysia Finley, a Wall Street Journal editorial writer and assistant editor of OpinionJournal.com
The ads run by the Lugar campaign slamming Richarcd Mourdock are some of the nastiest I've ever seen, getting pretty close to character assassination. Others have noticed this, too:
Dick Lugar has the reputation, deserved or not, of being the gentleman of the Senate, a now-grandfatherly figure who is well-liked personally if not politically.
No doubt you've noticed the endorsements: the Club for Growth for Richard Mourdock; the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for Richard Lugar. There is an epic battle going on, and Indiana is right in the middle of it:
Big business and the Tea Party are at swords' points once again, with GOP Senate primaries for the second straight election becoming proxy battles in the war over the soul of the Republican Party.
Add National Review to the list of conservative voices opting for Richard Mourdock over Richard Lugar:
Reaction from all over to the Lugar-Mourdock debate. Real Clear Politics notes the "No Sparks Fly" civility of the encounter.
Something to think about as we wait for the single Lugar-Mourdock debate tonight (7-8 p.m., check your listings but I do know it will be on WANE):
The Tea Party has lost a number of its top election targets this year, leaving Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) to emerge as public enemy No. 1 for national conservative groups — and poll numbers suggest they could get their man.
This Associated Press article goes into all the reasons Sen. Richard Lugar is being challenged from the right in his party and why some see him and Orrin Hatch, the Tea Party's other main target this year, as "old bulls out of touch with today's conservatives." I think this gets to the heart of it:
