Lakhota
Diamond Member
By SAHIL KAPUR
A battle between Karl Rove and the far right is the latest front in a growing civil war for the heart and soul of the Republican Party and clarifies the contours of the struggle.
On one side are the establishment Republicans, who recognize the changing face of the American electorate and want their party to win elections in the future. In this battle, they are represented by Rove and his new Conservative Victory Project, unveiled this week, which is targeting unelectable (read: extremely conservative) candidates in Republican Senate primaries.
There is a broad concern about having blown a significant number of races because the wrong candidates were selected, Steven Law, who will run Roves new effort, told the New York Times. We dont view ourselves as being in the incumbent protection business, but we want to pick the most conservative candidate who can win. Law is also president of the Rove-backed American Crossroads and CrossroadsGPS.
On the other side are the ultraconservatives, who believe the road to success involves full-fledged, uncompromising dedication to their tea party principles. These are right-wing groups like FreedomWorks and GOP Senate hopefuls like Reps. Paul Broun (GA) and Steve King (IA), who are the types of far-right candidates Rove is expected to target.
The Conservative Victory Project represents the latest round in a fight thats been going on for decades, said Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College. Since the origins of the modern conservative movement in the mid-1950s, purists and pragmatists have been battling for dominance in the GOP.
The latest round began when Rove sent donors a fundraising plea aimed at opposing Senate primary candidates deemed unelectable. Rove-backed American Crossroads spent $300 million trying to help Republican candidates win elections in 2012 and came up empty, arguably sunk by legitimate rape and other utterances by conservative Senate nominees that damaged Republican candidates across the board.
The pushback against Roves new PAC was fierce and swift from the right-wing apparatus.
The Empire is striking back, warned Matt Kibbe, the president of FreedomWorks.
Tea party-backed former Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) told TPM hell start a super PAC to counter Roves effort, declaring, If Rove wants a fight for the soul of the Republican Party, bring it on.
In the Georgia Senate race, Congressman Broun vowed not to be intimidated by the establishment. In Iowa, Congressman King declared that [n]obody can bully me out of running for the U.S. Senate, not even Karl Rove and his hefty war chest.
RedStates Erick Erickson wrote: I dare say any candidate who gets this groups support should be targeted for destruction by the conservative movement.
Brent Bozell of the conservative Media Research Center slammed Roves group, calling it shamelessly named, arguing that right-wing candidates like Ted Cruz (TX), Marco Rubio (FL), and Pat Toomey (PA) have won Senate seats. In response, Roves spokesman Jonathan Collegio called Bozell a hater.
More: Rove Vs. Tea Party Battle Reflects Deeper GOP Civil War | TPMDC