After roaring into the national spotlight in 2010 with a slew of victories in Congress, it appears the nation’s honeymoon with the Tea Party is nearing its end. Doomed by their intransigent partisanship, an obsession with ending Obamacare (and Obama), and a collection of casually-voiced extremist views, these far-right Republicans finally saw the results of their policies on Election Day. Others, such as Michelle Bachmann, the chairwoman of the Tea Party Caucus, barely scraped together enough votes to hold on to their seats.
Here we take a look at 5 Tea Partiers who will not be in Congress in 2013.
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Allen West
A Tea Party darling, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) is known for out-of-left-field statements such as, “If Joseph Goebbels was around, he’d be very proud of the Democrat Party, because they have an incredible propaganda machine,” or calling Obama supporters a “threat to the gene pool.” Although Democratic opponent Patrick Murphy expanded his lead over West to 2,000 votes in an early ballot recount, West’s campaign still refuses to concede victory. There is, however, little doubt that the Florida congressman is on his way out.
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Joe Walsh
Here’s some advice when running against a double-amputee war veteran: Do not accuse her of not being a “true hero.” Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) was defeated by Iraq-war veteran Tammy Duckworth, who lost both her legs when a rocket-propelled grenade took down her helicopter. Walsh complained Duckworth was too focused on her military career, and had little else going for her. “What else has she done?” Walsh said. “Female, wounded veteran … ehhh.” Later in the campaign, Walsh claimed a woman’s life could not be threatened by a pregnancy. Apparently, voters have a limit to how much stupidity they will tolerate.
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Todd Akin
Attempting to become a senator after serving as representative for Missouri’s 2nd congressional district since 2001, Todd Akin held a lead over Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill until he uttered his infamous “legitimate rape” comments. The widespread backlash from that television interview dogged Akin all the way to the voting booth, ensuring a victory for his Democratic opponent.
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Frank Guinta
Featured in a “Most Corrupt Members of Congress” report from a Washington-based non-profit, Rep. Frank Guinta (R-NH) “fudged the numbers and cooked the books to buy a seat in Congress,” according to CREW (Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington). Leading into the election, Guinta loaned his campaign $355,000, claiming the money was his own. His financial disclosure forms showed that, based on his income, he could not have covered those loans himself. Guinta refused to reveal the true origin of the funds. He lost his seat to the previous incumbent, Carol Shea Porter.
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Bobby Schilling
In 2010, when the Tea Party-driven GOP wrested the House majority from Democrats, Rep. Bobby Schilling (R-IL) became the first Republican elected to his Illinois seat in almost 30 years. During the campaign for his second term, Schilling could not resist adding to the chorus of Republican conspiracy theories. Asked by a Republican volunteer if he thought Obama had campaigned in 2008 with a strategy to “make America fail,” Schilling responded, ” “A lot of people think this is being done on purpose.” In November, Schilling lost his seat to Democratic challenger Cheri Bustos.
Photo by US House of Representatives via Wikimedia Commons
