There is a political revolution happening. Again. Not the Ron Paul Revolution inspired by the presidential campaign of the Texas congressman, but a revolution inspired by the Ron Paul Revolution that has gone on to change the source of their inspiration and now have given him the axe entirely. I’m speaking of course about the American Tea Party Movement.

            Much the same way the punk rock subculture got together and kicked out Green Day in the mid-1990’s, it appears that the facetiously named Tea Party has gotten together and kicked out Ron Paul.  

            The Tea Party, which was founded in some part on the basis of the ideas of Dr. Paul (who threw “tea party protests” to fund his 2008 presidential run, as a way to bring like-minded Libertarian Republicans to his campaign) has now put up three candidates, Tim Graney, Gerard Wall and John Gay, to campaign against him for his Texas congress seat, of which he has been incumbent since 1997.

            This could be due to a shift in political ideology of the Tea Party. Candidate Wall summed this up himself, saying "The Republican Party left its principles. And these Tea Parties are filled with people who want to take back our party." Ron Paul seemingly exploded on the political scene in 2007, the days of the Republican presidential primary, when he appeared on “The Colbert Report.” Not only did he get the Colbert Bump (which elevated his popularity for a short time but, if you paid attention, ultimately failed at him getting the Republican presidential nomination) but he excited libertarian-minded people across America , and has inspired many citizens to take action, including Debra Medina, who is currently running for Texas governor. When Dr. Paul was still campaigning nationally, and was the de facto leader of the Tea Party movement, it was indeed all very libertarian-constitutionalist. But this may no longer be the case.

            Let’s take a look at who the Tea Party Movement is backing (very strongly I might add). Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Palin supported Bush’s $700 billion bailout plan and opposed Obama’s $787 billion one, while Paul was against what he called “wasteful government spending” no matter who was in office. Palin supports the death penalty while Ron Paul is against it and also supports prison reform. Dr. Paul feels that the war on drugs is “out of control” and that most federal drug laws should be repealed, including legalizing marijuana, which Sarah Palin opposes. But what seems to be the straw that broke the camel’s back between Ron Paul and the Tea Partiers is foreign policy. The Texas congressman opposes the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan , saying that “We spend $1 trillion a year overseas. If you want to take care of people at home, you’ve got to cut someplace,” and “If the US is as great as I believe it should be and can be and has been, we will have influence around the world. We cannot spread our greatness and our goodness through the barrel of a gun.” Sarah Palin, on the other hand, not only feels the war in Iraq is “God’s plan,” but would support a war between Israel and Iran, saying “We don’t have to second-guess what [Israel’s] efforts would be if they believe that it is in their best interests to fight against a regime, especially Iran.”

            “Especially Iran ”. ’Cause, you know… They have it coming.  

            Ron Paul’s platform is based in fiscal responsibility, as was the Tea Party’s. But that seems to be a thing of the past for the Tea Party Movement, as they have put their support behind Tim Tancredo and Sarah Palin, who support federal aid, two wars, and are already backing more wars to come. This direct contradiction to Dr. Paul’s ideologies and the party backing three candidates for Ron Paul’s congress seat has delivered the message that the one-time political messiah is no longer welcome in their movement. The movement which has evolved from a libertarian political revolution to a group of conservatives looking to reclaim the GOP.

            So, all in all, perhaps it’s for the best that this split is happening. Because as the two political beliefs stem apart, it would be damaging to both if the association would continue. Ron Paul, who has the gravitas to make a legitimate run for the White House in 2012 (though he himself has said he won't), would only damage his reputation amongst the libertarian-minded voters if he were to remain linked to the Tea Party. And the Tea Party has their own creed at this point in their establishment, and are interested in putting up their own presidential candidates and taking back the Republican Party in doing so. It would only raise contradictions to remain aligned with their former leader. And contradictions are something the Tea Party has more than enough of.