Sugar for social cons in Tea Party brew

Nearly all of these new faces belong to “Tea Party” conservatives, determined to clean up the fiscal mess confronting the nation. But the flavor of the incoming freshman class is sweet for social conservatives too. Indeed, the 112th Congress could prove to be the most socially conservative set of newcomers since the one that rode into Washington on Ronald Reagan’s coattails in 1980. That’s clear from a close analysis of the public positions taken by the wave of conservative candidates who prevailed in hundreds of national and statewide contests. Consider the 37 races for governor, where Republicans made a net gain of five and now hold at least 29 seats. All four GOP women who won governorships Nov. 2 were endorsed by the Susan B. Anthony List, whose pro-life PAC ranked among the largest independent conservative funds in the 2010 election cycle. If Arizona’s Jan Brewer is controversial nationally, she proved quite popular at home. Nikki Haley not only will become South Carolina’s first female governor, but the first Indian-American woman elected governor anywhere in the United States. And in New Mexico, rising GOP star Susana Martinez will be the nation’s first Hispanic female governor...more