State of the Union Tea Party Response: Rand Paul Shows the Tea Party is Not Dead

Impact

Rand Paul is set to deliver the Tea Party's response to the SOTU address.

I keep thinking that the reelection of President Obama is an indication that we've moved on from the crazy days of Tea Party protests and offensive comments by elderly Republican leaders.

But, Rand Paul has made clear that the Tea Party is here to stay...even if it means the division of the Republican Party and further harm to the Republican brand.

While Marco Rubio will deliver the official Republican repsonse to the State of the Union address on Tuesday, Rand Paul will deliver his own version. 

“To me, I see it as extra response, I don’t see it as necessarily divisive,” Paul said on CNN’s “State of the Union" on Sunday. “But the thing is, this isn’t about [Rubio] and I, this is about the Tea Party, which is a grassroots movement, a real movement, millions of Americans who are still concerned about some of the deal making that goes on in Washington. They’re still concerned about the fact that we’re borrowing $50,000 a second." 

His point seems to be a serious one, but remains to be seen if Washington and the rest of America will take him seriously.