I think the Tea Party has finally "jumped the shark" . . .

Does the Tea Party really believe their own myths about being a grassroots organization? Wall Street money and media made them - and Wall Street money and media will take them down, too. They just simply went too far with the default threats. They have "jumped the shark".

Excellent analysis by Talking Points Memo here.

Update:

Despite her (paid) straw poll win in Iowa, Tea Party champion (i.e. "tip of the spear"), Congresswoman Michele Bachmann's days as a candidate for President are probably pretty numbered, too. She's not going to be able to wiggle around the issue of her false statements and clear vote against raising the debt ceiling for very much longer, no matter how incredibly lax our national "news" media are about confronting her with it. The facts are the facts - you can only spin that so far. Clearly, she's a big part of the problem, not the solution this country needs. And with WSJ and Karl Rove both chiming in about Bachmann unsuitability, it's pretty much official. She's D.O.N.E.

But before you get all excited about Bachmann's fall from grace, consider this: Fanatics don't just stop because they are confronted with facts or logic or even by being ostracized. They can't. They are in pursuit of a HOLY cause (not to be confused with religious faith) and they will sacrifice their very lives to reach that goal. And in this case, their "devil" to be defeated is Barack Obama. It always has been. They will stop at nothing to make sure that he is defeated.

The Tea Party isn't truly "for" anything except in Bachmann's famous words, making Barack Obama a one term President.

The Tea Party will not cease to exist, although they will have limited power as political candidates from now on. But make no mistake, they will do everything in their power to bring down Barack Obama. If that means getting on board with a more traditional Republican candidate, they'll do that. Because while you can't stop fanatics with logic or facts, they are amenable to joining another brotherhood that soothes their fears and comfortably enfolds them in a corporate whole where their frustrations about life are still assuaged.

Then, and only then, will they cease to exist as a "party". However, if the Republicans fail to unseat President Obama, we will see a resurgence in their fanaticism. And, I predict, it will be much more aggressive than disrupting town halls and running Tea Party candidates for Congress. Without that legitimate outlet for expressing their hatred, they will turn to other means to rid this country of their devil: the "Anti-American" "tyrant" that is, for them, Barack Obama.