Civil War

GOP, Tea Party Battle in Delaware

As moderate candidate Castle falters in polls.

When's the last time something exciting happened in Delaware? The Republican Party, which has mostly embraced the Tea Party, is in a tough battle against the conservative movement in Delaware, where a popular GOP moderate, Rep. Mike Castle, is now falling behind insurgent Christine O’Donnell in polls of the Senate primary. Republican leaders say O’Donnell is unqualified—her political resume includes losing twice to then-Sen. Joe Biden, and she’s pulled in few campaign donations from inside her state. O’Donnell has a long list of past financial problems, including an IRS lien and a near-foreclosure. But O’Donnell does have the endorsement of Sarah Palin, as well as Jim DeMint and, of course, the Tea Party Express. She would very likely lose the general election against Democrat Chris Coons in November. GOP leaders are baffled that Tea Party activists would rather lose with a conservative Republican candidate than win with a more moderate one.