This really does need to be said, apparently, over and over.

Cole:

The tea party didn’t come about because of crony capitalism, the tea party was wholly a reaction to the election of Barack Obama. We’ve gone over and over this. The tea party is not some organic movement that just appeared out of nowhere- it was the Republican base re-branding themselves with the help of the Koch brother’s various wingnut welfare organizations, Fox news and Roger Ailes, and out of work conservative political consultants. It wasn’t overtaken by “mainstream” Republicans- it punished all the mainstream Republicans in primaries. That is how we got lunatics like Sharon Angle and the masturbator-hater from Delaware whose name I can not remember.

That would be Christine O'Donnell.

Anyway, it amazes me that even with the dozens and dozens of hard polls about the Teabaggers (as well the fact that there's a "Tea Party" caucus in the House that -- wait for it -- caucuses with Republicans) -- that there are still some in the legacy media that treat them as a distinct movement from the GOP.

And no, they weren't angry at TARP -- they were angry at ACORN.