Enter the maze of the Tea Party mind:
Tea Party supporters’ fierce animosity toward Washington, and the president in particular, is rooted in deep pessimism about the direction of the country and the conviction that the policies of the Obama administration are disproportionately directed at helping the poor rather than the middle class or the rich.
Heaven knows the people who don’t have enough are the last people we’d want to help. I’m with Republican Jesus on this one: help the needy rich. The rest of us can eat bootstraps.
Also worth noting that almost all of the Tea Partiers surveyed vote Republican.
Here’s the nugget of angst at the center of the labyrinth, a remarkable phenomenon:
…Nearly three-quarters of those who favor smaller government said they would prefer it even if it meant spending on domestic programs would be cut.
But in follow-up interviews, Tea Party supporters said they did not want to cut Medicare or Social Security — the biggest domestic programs, suggesting instead a focus on “waste.”
…
“That’s a conundrum, isn’t it?” asked Jodine White, 62, of Rocklin, Calif. “I don’t know what to say. Maybe I don’t want smaller government. I guess I want smaller government and my Social Security.” She added, “I didn’t look at it from the perspective of losing things I need. I think I’ve changed my mind.”
Funny what a little knowledge does…
