GOP House Tea Party Candidate Tells Sarah Palin to Stay Home

Last updated on August 10th, 2014 at 04:59 pm

The latest piece of evidence that being labeled with the Sarah Palin brand is more of a curse than a blessing comes to us from Republican Massachusetts US House candidate Jeffery Perry who when asked about Palin said, “I don’t want her to come down. She’s an entertainer.”

In an interview with NECN according to the Boston Globe, Perry made it clear that Palin’s support is not welcome. Asked if he would like Palin to stump for him, he said, “I don’t want her to come down. She’s an entertainer.” Later when asked what he would say if Palin offered to come to state for him, he answered, “I’m going to say no.” What makes this even more interesting is, not only is Perry the Republican nominee, but he is also supported by the Tea Party.

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Perry is not only the Tea Party supported candidate in the race, but he is also considered the one Republican that has the best chance of breaking the Democratic grip on the Massachusetts congressional delegation. People should not believe the hype about Sarah Palin being the national Tea Party leader. There are many states where Sarah Palin is not only unwelcome, but she is absolutely toxic to the hopes of Republican candidates.

An endorsement or visit from Sarah Palin would likely be the kiss of death for Jeffery’s campaign. The secret to Palin’s Tea Party success is simple. She targets low population states, dumps a bunch of cash into the race at the 12th hour all with the intention of getting her supporters to come out and vote. It is a neat trick that also enhances her brand, but it’s effectiveness is limited.

The problem is that the Palin brand has proven to be a candidate killer in general elections. Palin’s popularity with Republican voters is a big help to candidates in GOP primaries, but she is so unpopular with Democrats and Independents that her endorsement actually hurts Republican candidates with the overall electorate in general election contests.

As I wrote in a previous post, “The news gets even worse for the Republican Party and the candidates that Sarah Palin is endorsing. Only 8% said that a Palin endorsement would make them more enthusiastic about a candidate, and 15 said they would be comfortable with a candidate that Palin endorsed. Fifteen percent said that they would have reservations about a candidate endorsed by Palin, and a whopping 37% said that a Palin endorsement would make them very uncomfortable with a candidate endorsed by Palin, and 21% answered that her endorsement made no difference.”

The only reason that Palin is a serious threat to win the 2012 Republican presidential nomination is that she is the only possible candidate who has any sort of committed following. The Republican Party is still a barren wasteland with no leadership, organization, or structure. Some say the GOP is embroiled in a civil war right now, but it is really more of a turf war. It is not defined or organized enough to be a civil war, but it is this kind of chaos that has allowed Palin to become important within the GOP, but no one should confuse her ability to exploit interparty anarchy with legitimate popularity. Sarah Palin isn’t popular, and that is why Jeffery Perry wants nothing to do with her.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association