Why Won’t Tea Party Cooperate With Republicans?

Chances are high that all red-blooded Americans (and even some blue-blooded) survived the wonderful evolutionary period known as “The Teenage Years”, which – thanks to the genetic bond that makes parents feel compelled to never give up on their children – we all managed to get through without too much damage. By the end of it, we pretty much solidified what music we like, what our voices sound like, and what size shoes we wear. The important stuff.

You’ve probably figured by now that my point is the Tea Party, as a group, is a teenager. Keen eye you have. But it’s not merely a reflection of the youth and vitality of its “movement”. (The core belief system is, in fact, very old. The Tea Party is nothing more than yet another manifestation of Conservatism that believes with its rigid soul that moving into the future means the destruction of the past – that future and past cannot co-exist. Whether that be because it has a terribly poor memory, or merely a lack of imagination we may never know. But Conservatism’s desperate cling to stopping Future has been around for millennia. The irony of it reincarnating every generation with total ignorance of its previous incarnation is proof of its inability to accept change. Change requires context beyond a generation, which by its very nature Conservatism doesn’t have. Conservatism writes its own history and drinks its own kool aid. Every generation has a Rush Limbaugh funded by Koch brothers, just like every society has its marginalized, and every comic book its hero. It’s part of the narrative of Humanity, that – like the chorus of every pop song – seems to repeat one too many times.)

These are the Wonder Years of the Tea Party if only when viewed from the outside: the rest of us looking into the ring, mouths slightly open, watching it all “in wonder” of what the heck these people are thinking… but then we remember, “Oh yes, they are teenagers. They’ll grow out of it.” Unfortunately, it’s that exact parental patience that got the Republican Party into this civics lesson on Conservative tantrums: a mud wrestling match of who can prove themselves strongest by means of demonstrating the most cruelty. Had the GOP establishment not condoned this behavior from the outset, it wouldn’t be in this mess. The GOP is guilty of bad parenting.

If you’ve made it this far, by now you’re probably wondering why I haven’t mentioned super-red, gerrymandered congressional districts, and that being the reason why Tea Party republicans don’t cooperate with the GOP. Why compromise when compromise means losing your seat in Congress?

While it is true that ink-blot districts drawn in 2010 facilitated the rise of the Don’t Tread On Me chorus of the far right, it is not the root cause of the stubborn mule mentality that has proven time and time again it’s perfectly happy throwing the country over a cliff. The gerrymandered congressional districts are a reflection of the mentality, much like angry teenagers who feel marginalized start to wear all black, big boots, and overly-dramatic face make-up (that sometimes sorta looks like gerrymandered districts, actually).

We all know more people vote for democrats than vote for republicans, but in large part that’s a matter of how populations naturally migrate and grow. Once again, we’re faced with city vs. country, but even that doesn’t account for the Tea Party’s total lack of cooperation with the members of the GOP who are capable of behaving like grown-ups…

This is when we must remember that we are animals. Pack animals, at that. And when an animal is in the process of maturing from a wee cub into an adult, he challenges the established pecking order. He challenges to prove strength and find his place in the hierarchy. To be a teenager is to fight against that which is older. That’s built into the life process. Without that process, there would be no evolution of leadership. The teenager phase is nature running its intended course.

The Tea Party won’t cooperate with the GOP establishment because it’s perpetually stuck in the teenage phase of life. Sadly, this problem is exacerbated by the fact that fighting against the hierarchy is exactly what they believe they should be doing – it’s natural after all (if you’re the sort who believes in science). The more opposition they get, the more they feel vindicated. Thanks to information bubbles, and yes, gerrymandered districts, they have no idea they’re losing. At least in real nature an animal knows when it’s lost. Right wing nature is a different beast entirely.

I don’t know about you, but when I was a teenager I was fairly certain that I was the ruler of the known world. We see an awful lot of that sort of self-righteousness coupled with lack of experience in the Tea Party members of the House. They operate on feeling, not experience. They are motivated by a need to be popular, rather than to do what’s best. They are far more insecure than they let on (hence the over-the-top bravado and ever-escalating threats). Speaking of bravado, every year we have the opportunity to witness CPAC. During this frat party of hyper-conservatism we see how the most conservative within the Republican Party behave no better than a stereotypical cliche of well-to-do high school adolescents: spewing one-liners and insults so they can get cheers, and “whoo hoo!”s from the crowd. High school. Petty. Simple.

Not cooperating with the GOP establishment is who they are. Without friction, friction is nothing. Without its bull-headed stubbornness there would be no Tea Party… and there would be progress.