From think Progress: How The Banks Bought The Tea Party

[geefloyd46]

"The 15 freshmen Republican representatives in the House Tea Party Caucus each ran in 2010 on a populist anti-Wall Street message, highlighting their opposition to bank bailouts like the 2008 Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and criticizing Washington for enabling the banking sector as it became “Too Big to Fail.” After winning, all fifteen received significant PAC contributions from the banking industry — and have become a reliable vote and mouthpiece for the financial industry, a ThinkProgress analysis of campaign contributions, voting records and public statements reveals.

Rather than campaigning on a typical pro-business platform, the Tea Party freshmen tapped into public resentment of big banks and bailouts. For example, then-candidate Sandy Adams (R-FL) said on her campaign website that she “opposes government bailouts” and “would have voted against TARP and the auto bailout.” Jeff Landry (R-LA) said bailouts of private businesses had “corrupted our free market system by rewarding the irresponsible and penalizing the responsible,” blasting “bank bailouts, which led to taxpayer money directly or indirectly going into multi-million dollar bonuses.”


http://laborspains.blogspot.com/2012/05/how-banks-bought-tea-party.html

[drm604]

1. The Tea Party wasn't bought after the fact. It was never truly grass roots.

It was astroturf from the beginning.

[dmr]

2. I would bet those 15 are not very intelligent & they lack moral character.

Seriously. Low info & easily swayed candidates voted into office by low info & easily swayed voters. The teaparty is a plutocratic scam played on these people. They fell for it hook, line & sinker.

The new Congressmen most likely lack analytical skills & probably can't think fast on their feet.

They got elected & ended up being dazzled by DC, wined & dined, swayed, wooed & maybe even threatened, too. The money people will play nice so long as the newbies play nice back.

Life is good in DC. They feel important. Perks are great. They can be easily led, maybe even easy to be blackmailed. If they play the game right, the money people will finance their subsequent campaigns - and everybody gets what they want.

Everyone except their constituents and the rest of America who also suffer from their actions/inactions.

Sometimes I wish I didn't follow politics.