Were I in charge of grand strategy for the Tea Party, I would have one particular pipedream. In it, I would create a popular TV program depicting Washington politicians as a lying, thieving, corrupt, cynical bunch of egomaniacs, concerned solely with their own power and privilege and empty of any sense of obligation to the public. The main characters would be role models for such a world, but, as an interesting twist, they would not be cartoon monsters, which are easily dismissed. My leads would be very human, and would often appear sympathetic. I would not want the audience to dismiss my program as obvious fantasy, so, helped by superb acting, my story and characters would be believable. A few more hits on the pipe and I would make it explicit that the main characters were Democrats, but a few equally-repulsive Republican establishment types would be thrown in for balance. Both sides would hate the Tea Parties. Then I would make the president into a boob, obsessed with the...(Read Full Post)