by Javier Manjarres

Controversy continues to swirl around Congressman Allen West’s recent vote to support the “Budget Control Act of 2011” that allowed the federal government to once again raise our debt ceiling – a move that infuriated some within the conservative base of the Republican party as well as some amongst the ‘Tea Party’ faithful that make up West’s core support.  Rather incredulously, certain Tea Party leaders have announced that they will be putting up a primary candidate to challenge Allen West for his Congressional seat.

“I’m going to stand with this Boehner plan and, once again, if the folks who one minute they’re saying that I’m their ‘Tea Party hero’ and what, three or four days later ‘I’m a Tea Party defector’ — that kind of schizophrenia I’m not going to get involved in.”- Congressman Allen West

While West’s support of the measure and vote were certainly questionable- especially in the light of the downgrade we received from Standard & Poor’s- a case could be made that there were strategic reasons for his support of the legislation as well as larger future political implications that were the basis of his support.  West recently referred to this small group of Tea Party members threatening to primary him as “schizophrenic” is understandable considering that these activists seem incapable of making a distinction between a single skirmish versus the long war.  Some perspective on the battle field is critical- isn’t that West’s forté?

Unfortunately there are some in the Tea Party movement who themselves constitute a group of narcissistic purists that fits the Democrat caricature of the ‘Tea Party’ – as hotheaded activists and extremists that cannot be reasoned with.

It would be helpful to the broader movement if these individuals improved their political skills- both their tone and their message- and evaluate what they are going to say before they say it.  For certain Tea Party folks to threaten West with a primary challenge is the equivalent of calling fire down on their own position.  If Tea Party folks can’t identify “one of our own” in the movement- someone who is a threat to liberal Democrats as well as to the Republican establishment- it is irresponsible to say the least to write-off West over a single vote that had important significance beyond the substance of the legislation.

Tea Party “leaders” should be far more concerned with holding the seat West won in 2010- a very competitive district- rather than giving fodder to Democrats that are clearly targeting the seat and West for defeat in 2012.  With the new found political influence that the Tea Party has been able to garner over the past two years, its leaders had better learn to pick the right fights. Otherwise, it will unwittingly undermine the very constitutional conservative principles that it seeks to restore to government.