The threat of open civil war looms large over the Republican Party,

The threat of open civil war looms large over the Republican Party, and the underlying causes seem to puzzle both politicians and pundits in the GOP Establishment (it's absolutely baffling to the Liberals in the media and Democrats, but that is no surprise.)

The rise of the Tea Party has upset the GOP elites, who find themselves under fire from the grassroots of their own party. House Speaker John Boehner illustrated this perfectly during the government shutdown:

"Frankly, I think they're misleading their followers. I think they're pushing our members into places where they don't want to be. And frankly, I just think that they've lost all credibility," "You know, one of them, they pushed us into the fight to de-fund ObamaCare and shut down the government,"

Boehner is not alone in claiming the base has been the victims of demagoguery. John McCain called the Tea Party wing of the GOP "wacko birds" for standing on principle and refusing to fund ObamaCare. Similar statements can be found for many Establishment Republicans. They simply do not understand the reason for the Tea Party.

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Case in point: Christopher "Kit" Bond, former Missouri governor and four time U.S. Senator and a self-described foe of ObamaCare in all it's forms has been hired to lobby the Missouri legislature - to expand Medicaid. This is a key component needed to fully implement ObamaCare. From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

"He's also been an outspoken critic of the federal health insurance law. During a 2010 interview with the conservative magazine Newsmax, Bond said the financial burden on state budgets of expanding Medicaid would be "horrific." Last November, in an interview with The Joplin Globe, he referred to the law (The Affordable Care Act) as "a pile of manure." Bond could not be reached for comment Thursday, but Mehan said Medicaid expansion is no longer about support or opposition to the federal law. The chamber was an early and outspoken advocate for expanding Medicaid in Missouri after the Affordable Care Act took effect. "We opposed ObamaCare, and every day it seems like a worse and worse idea," he said. "But it is the law, it's been upheld by the courts and we don't see it changing anytime soon. We should take the opportunity to get an enormous amount of investment back into our state and, while we're at it, improve Medicaid for everyone." Since officially taking the job Jan. 16, Bond has wasted no time reaching out to his fellow Republicans. "He's already stopped by my office," said Sen. Ryan Silvey, a Kansas City Republican opposed to expansion who previously worked in Bond's Senate office. "It is very interesting to be lobbied on any issue by someone you consider to be a mentor."

The success of Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and the flock of the "wacko birds" - for that matter the reason for the success of Mr. McCain's former running mate - is a result of the same fundamental force that gave Ronald Reagan his dominating political persona. Analysts have never understood Reagan. His political fortunes have been ascribed to slick marketing, or to an engaging personality, or to his quick wit. He has been portrayed as a good looking senile geriatric who fooled the public, or as a master political manipulator, or even as a great compromiser (this last being the latest mantra by the media to seduce the GOP into a compromise that equates to total surrender.) But none of these things explain the devotion to Reagan both at the time and now. It's simple; Reagan was an honest man. The power of the truth shined forth from Mr. Reagan. It really was that simple. Reagan said what he meant and meant what he said, and he tried his best (sometimes failing) to fulfill his campaign promises. The U.N. Convention of the Law of the Sea was a classic example; Reagan refused to sign it despite a great deal of pressure to do so. The principle argument was that the treaty had been negotiated for a long time, but Reagan was nonplussed;

"But isn't that what the election was all about?"

In other words, he meant to do what he had promised his supporters. Reagan reduced the size of the welfare state, rebuilt the military, aggressively fought the "Evil Empire" and generally did what he said he would do. America loved him for that. And that is why the search for a "new Reagan" is not a search for another man of similar style and image, but is rather a search for a man of Reagan's character. It is character that made George Washington the Father of the United States; Washington was just a mediocre general (he actually thought to leave Yorktown and attack New York when he had Cornwallis trapped) and was hardly a brilliant orator or clever political wheeler-dealer. Washington's greatness stemmed from one thing only - his character. He was an honest man. He accepted the power given to him and relinquished it as he had promised. Everyone loved Washington because of his honesty. It is that which the grassroots seek. But instead we are inundated with men like Kit Bond, self-seeking scoundrels who will sell their principles for thirty pieces of silver, or men like Mitch McConnell who will settle for an expensive dam in his home state to end opposition to funding ObamaCare and who has been vociferous in his attacks on the Tea Party. We have most of the elites in the GOP preparing to push an amnesty for illegal aliens in defiance of the grassroots but in obeisance to the wishes of the monied classes, of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Yet these turncoat leaders paint themselves red every election cycle, and wrap themselves in the mantle of Reagan, a man whose jockstrap had more integrity than they.

We are tired: Settling for fair-weather friends. Bleeding to death by a thousand paper cuts, Making endless losing political deals to salvage the political fortunes of the cowardly liars in the ruling class

We are tired. We are tired of settling for fair-weather friends. We are tired of bleeding to death by a thousand paper cuts (until the Democrats actually disembowel the country with things like ObamaCare). We are tired of making endless losing political deals to salvage the political fortunes of the cowardly liars in the ruling class. The GOP elites do not understand that the survival of the Republic is actually at stake, and they cannot understand why these uppity Tea Party types continue to oppose them. To the elites politics is a game of trickery, of one-upmanship, of maneuvering and cutting deals. To the rest of us it is about our lives. Much like the Greek gods our ruling class entertain themselves with games that mean little to them but are deadly serious to us. We've had enough; we did not elect gods to rule over us. And every election cycle the political class whispers sweet nothings in our collective ear, but they are indeed nothings. They start looking for a better deal as soon as they get elected (which is why they want this massive influx of Latin Americans, for instance; a less bothersome electorate.) Like an unappreciated housewife we have to henpeck our RINO suitors into making even small gestures of affection. They do it to keep us quiet, then turn their backs on us to twerk with our rivals - and quite publicly so that they may get maximum exposure. Kit Bond is only the latest act of political philandering. All we are asking for is honesty. If our leaders cannot be honest, cannot be true to those they brought to the dance, then they can and should be replaced. If the GOP is so corrupted that it cannot be saved then we will start fresh. A false friend is more dangerous than an enemy; you know where you stand with the enemy. The GOP elites are false friends.

Moral relativism, pragmatism, materialism, a belief in ends justifying means, all have conspired to create the current political class

Moral relativism, pragmatism born of the apostasy from our Judeo-Christian heritage, materialism, a belief in ends justifying means, all have conspired to create the current political class. The Ivy League is ripe with all of these failings, and the political class emerges from that particular maelstrom. The old values of honesty, integrity, absolute truths, have been dismissed as old fashioned. And while the Democrats embraced this long ago, the GOP ruling junta has likewise boarded that particular Antenoran Express. Washington has become a morality free zone, a blackbody city on a hill, a spiritual event horizon into which no light may enter. Like all degenerate cities the time will come where ruin shall be upon it - as it was in Sodom, or Nineveh, or Carthage. We want America out before it's too late. Mitt Romney lost the last election not because he was such a poor politician (although he was) but because the Tea Party saw a man of dubious honesty. Romney created the template for ObamaCare then disavowed it for political reasons. He attacked his enemies on his side with a viciousness he refused to indulge when meeting the enemy. Many conservatives stayed home, preferring to not have to dishonor themselves by voting for a dishonorable man (and despite Romney's many wonderful qualities his double-mindedness can indeed be characterized as dishonorable.) The same held true for McCain, for Bob Dole, for "read my lips" George H.W. Bush. It's not a search for perfection or for political skill so much as for honesty. It would do well for the GOP to consider the words of the Apostle Paul to the Philippians; "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Sadly, the GOP acquiesced to the Bible being kicked out of the public square long ago.