Tea Party Groups Divided in Nebraska Senate Race

By Caitlin Huey-Burns, Real Clear Politics

Two national Tea Party groups are split in their Nebraska Senate primary preferences as the GOP targets incumbent Ben Nelson, a key part of its effort to win control of the upper chamber.

FreedomWorks threw its support behind underdog Republican candidate and state Treasurer Don Stenberg (pictured) over establishment pick and state Attorney General Jon Bruning on Tuesday. Back in May, the Tea Party Express, an organization that played an influential but divisive role in last cycle’s Senate primaries, endorsed Bruning, the race’s nominal front-runner.

But with neither candidate able to claim the mantle of the grass-roots movement, how influential will these endorsements truly be?

“Certainly these national endorsements can help to grow support and a fundraising base outside Nebraska,” says Jordan McGrain, executive director of the Nebraska Republican Party. “The Tea Party groups in the state are obviously very independent, and my guess is that all the major candidates in the primary will have Tea Party support of some kind.”

What’s not clear is whether Tea Party backing will have as much impact in the Cornhusker State as has been the case elsewhere. “I’m not convinced the Tea Party in Nebraska is something that’s absolutely crucial for the Republican candidate to win the endorsement of,” says Mike Wagner, a political science professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “I think they’re an active group, a motivated group, but I don’t think they’ve demonstrated they are the kingmakers in American politics.”

To read more, visit: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/09/27/tea_party_groups_divided_in_nebraska_senate_race.html

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