DeMint Tea Party Support Riles GOP Stalwarts

Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., has been giving his fellow GOP senators the business recently for failing to provide enough support for tea party-backed candidates. And now some of them are hitting back, Politico reports.

Last week, DeMint said his colleagues were doing “everything” in their power to help Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s write-in campaign against GOP nominee Joe Miller. And he blasted them for doing “business as usual.”

Several Republican senators say DeMint is simply ignoring their strong support for Miller, hurting efforts to heal the party after some tough primaries. “I personally think it’s very counterproductive,” retiring Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri told Politico.