As the “experts” analyze how a Donald Trump presidency happened, their autopsies should trace back in part to the creation of ObamaCare in 2010, a driving trigger behind how the Tea Party became a potent anti-Establishment force. This grassroots groundswell, emboldened by Sarah Palin and other Tea Party leaders, helped sweep into office a new crop of Tea Party Congressional leaders with the Freedom Caucus in 2012 and 2014. Part of this crop of Tea Party favorites was Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, who worked with his pal Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas to force a government shutdown in 2013. One could argue that this act of defiance continued the anti-establishment fervor that helped create Donald Trump.
On Election Night, Bold reporter Catie Perry asked Lee whether he contributed to Trump’s rise and he denied the charge. This could be in part because many Utahans were upset with Lee for his role in the shutdown. That Utahans didn’t like the shutdown approach no doubt explains part of why Independent candidate Evan McMullin did so well last night in Utah. In fact, Lee himself said that he voted for McMullin as a protest vote.
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Jeff
November 9, 2016 at 6:18 pm
Trump beat both Hillary and McCullin combined. I wouldn’t call that doing well. He shouldn’t have been on ballot to begin with.