On Tuesday night, former Rep. Bob Beauprez beat a slate of Republicans, including, most notably, former presidential candidate Tom Tancredo. Mitt Romney and other hated/beloved GOP establishment types had endorsed Beauprez, who was clearly the most electable candidate available to face John Hickenlooper. More importantly, the state GOP did not want Tancredo’s tedious one-note campaign dragging down its entire ticket.
Still, this wasn’t — though you may hear differently — another Tea Party vs. Old Guard matchup. What was different in Colorado? Where it mattered, the establishment choice was as conservative on issues as any other candidate running. Actually, paleoconservative Tancredo’s designation as a “Tea Party” favorite by the media was more a matter of perception — or more probably lazy shorthand many journalists use to signify “crazy.” Because of his propensity for self-promotion and the media’s propensity to blow out every uncompromising statement he makes, the support Tancredo enjoyed among Republicans in the state was always overestimated. Especially by him. For instance, in 2010, conservatives broke out into a three-way battle — Tancredo supporters (and he ran on the American Constitution Party’s ticket), the Tea Party (behind the deeply flawed Dan Maes) and the Colorado GOP establishment. That race had almost nothing to do with issues and everything to do with egos.
