WASHINGTON — The extraordinary zeal of the Tea Party has been a signature development during Barack Obama’s presidency — with dangers for both Republicans and Democrats.
Its white-hot opposition to Mr. Obama, seen first in lawmakers’ town hall meetings and then in the 2010 midterm election campaign, helped cost Democrats control of the House. It could yet help Republicans hold their majority in 2014.
The downside for Republican leaders occurs when that political energy propels the party to places that make it harder to win general elections and to govern. Just as Mitt Romney struggled to avoid getting dragged too far right in the 2012 presidential race, Speaker John A. Boehner struggled this week to steer his caucus away from what could be an economically and politically catastrophic government shutdown.
But some Republican politicians display an ability to absorb the heat and reflect it back in more politically promising directions. That’s why 2016 presidential hopefuls and House leaders could learn from recent town meetings conducted by Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma.
Mr. Cole, a House deputy whip and a former chief of staff for the Republican National Committee, represents a district that voted two-to-one Republican in the last three presidential elections. Since first winning his southwest Oklahoma seat in 2002, he has never drawn less than 60 percent of the vote.
What dominated his sessions with constituents was, as one man in Midwest City described it, “a sense of outrage about our government.” Mr. Cole embraced the ideological touchstones of his constituents: He said he was “violently opposed” to the new health care law, extolled his National Rifle Association membership and noted that “I’ve never voted for Planned Parenthood in my life.”
Yet Mr. Cole also challenged unhappy constituents on tactics, tone and spirit. If replicated effectively on Capitol Hill and the 2016 presidential campaign trail, those three guideposts could be a path toward expanding the party’s appeal:
Its white-hot opposition to Mr. Obama, seen first in lawmakers’ town hall meetings and then in the 2010 midterm election campaign, helped cost Democrats control of the House. It could yet help Republicans hold their majority in 2014.
The downside for Republican leaders occurs when that political energy propels the party to places that make it harder to win general elections and to govern. Just as Mitt Romney struggled to avoid getting dragged too far right in the 2012 presidential race, Speaker John A. Boehner struggled this week to steer his caucus away from what could be an economically and politically catastrophic government shutdown.
But some Republican politicians display an ability to absorb the heat and reflect it back in more politically promising directions. That’s why 2016 presidential hopefuls and House leaders could learn from recent town meetings conducted by Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma.
Mr. Cole, a House deputy whip and a former chief of staff for the Republican National Committee, represents a district that voted two-to-one Republican in the last three presidential elections. Since first winning his southwest Oklahoma seat in 2002, he has never drawn less than 60 percent of the vote.
What dominated his sessions with constituents was, as one man in Midwest City described it, “a sense of outrage about our government.” Mr. Cole embraced the ideological touchstones of his constituents: He said he was “violently opposed” to the new health care law, extolled his National Rifle Association membership and noted that “I’ve never voted for Planned Parenthood in my life.”
Yet Mr. Cole also challenged unhappy constituents on tactics, tone and spirit. If replicated effectively on Capitol Hill and the 2016 presidential campaign trail, those three guideposts could be a path toward expanding the party’s appeal: