They’re racists! They’re rednecks! They’re thugs, holding up passersby, chainsawing zombies engaging in massacres, hostage-takers holding guns to the head of an innocent government, homegrown versions of terrorists, bombs strapped to fat, flabby midriffs, set on blowing themselves and all others to hell. And what have they done? Nothing but follow the civics book rules to the letter: exercise their rights to speech and assembly; campaign, vote, win office, and vote their own minds.

It’s not that the Tea Party should not be critiqued for its personnel, tactics or strategies, but that the attacks on it have seemed to not stem from such matters, but from the numerous bats, trolls and warthogs that teem without resting in liberals’ minds.