If you’re a Liberal or Progressive or just a vanilla Democrat who has been thinking about an electoral rout this fall, congratulations, you’re a member of the elite. I can’t really estimate how many of us there are, but the fact is that most of the nation did not really start paying attention to the 2010 election cycle until after Jerry Lewis brought his Labor Day telethon to a close.

Sure there was lots of polling that said people were pissed at the government, who wouldn’t be when there is nearly 10% unemployment and things don’t seem to be getting measurably better for millions of people? The “Throw the Bums Out!” sentiment is always strongest before the vast majority of the people start paying attention to the actual candidates they have to choose between. That is part of why the generic ballot polling is almost useless. We don’t get to pick between Democrat and Republican, we get to pick between two (or occasionally more) real people who speak and have a record we can judge.

This is where the political rubber meets the road. For all their structural advantages (bad economy, large majorities some of which are from very conservative districts, midterm election without the White House) the Republicans should be looking at a sweep. The thing is they still have not learned the lessons of the 2006 and 2008 elections. Americans don’t want rabid conservatives; they want some representation that will solve their problems. This leaves the Republicans out in the cold.

This rally provided group therapy for community organizers and Obama supporters looking for a way to reaffirm their dedication to hope and change. It was not only a chance to unify around the need for jobs, education, environmental protections and clean energy, immigrant rights, college affordability, etc. but also a chance to reclaim history…

John Thune has predicted that if Republicans win majorities in Congress but don’t follow through on their promises, it could cause a third party built in the shape of the Tea Party movement to take off.

One month before the midterm elections, hundreds of organizations–many of them major organizations the Democratic Party needs to help them get-out-the-vote (GOTV) for November–will send a message to Democrats: No matter how much you beat upon the base for raising its voice and offering healthy criticism, progressives will still vote for you.

If you think the Tea Party represents real people who are mad as hell about real issues, you might want to know that it just had its first rally under the Beverly Hills sign over the weekend.

I found out about the rally when I showed up for a 10 o’clock news debate and singer Pat Boone was on the other side dressed in his “Beverly Hills Tea Party” sweater. If you want to know what the Tea Party’s really about, listen to Boone croon about the “free market” and “deregulation” like it’s a new idea.

Conservatives, including those of the Tea Party variety, aren’t “anti-government.” In most respects they are pro-government to the point of authoritarianism. What they really oppose is any form of cooperative or collective solution to the problems of a complex industrial (or post-industrial) society – especially when the beneficiaries are people they regard with suspicion or fear.

There’s a name that’s becoming as ubiquitous in dirty oil politics as Coke cans are in greasy spoons. And it’s pronounced like the soft drink, but spelled Koch. Koch-heads now on the radar include Carly Fiorina, the Tea Party and Proposition 23.

Recently, the Wonk Room identified six Senate races and eight House races in which supporters of climate action are pitted against candidates who deny that climate change exists.

“Outsider” progressives are feeling strong emotions these days, which is clearly coming across in the spate of recent diaries on the subject. I submit that this fervor is not misery and is not just anger, but rather has its source in something much more positive.

The Tea Party is funded by elitist groups who have an agenda contrary to the American people at large.