Is the Tea Party Over? (NY Times)

Editoral Critique

This opinion piece about the right-wing political contest basically says that it's scattered and there isn't much of one.
It begins saying, "The Republican establishment was AWOL, leaderless, or intimidated" (at the beginning of the race), which I entirely agree with, and which I think is pretty indisputable.  After all, we did have, (in the newspaper's words:) "the Sarah Palin tease, replaced by the short-lived Michele Bachmann infatuation, after which everyone swooned, briefly for Rick Perry.  Herman Cain is having a little fling."  (and basically Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul are laughs.)  Which is sad because I originally wanted to vote for Gingrich, but he said something I (and a large portion of the Republican Party) disagreed with.  I forget what it was...but it was important.  Healthcare maybe?  Anyway, and Ron Paul too, but by this point, who's voting for Ron Paul?
Ultimately, says the article, the two Right-wing candidates remaining are Mitt Romney and Rick Perry, which does seem true.  Mitt Romney has been a strong possibility since 2010 at least and Perry is simply strong.
My idea with Perry is that he's basically a newer Bush, an idea which is supported in the 7th paragraph.  (He's not necessarily slick, but serious, etc.)  And as popular as Bush became, that was largely among Democrats, upon whom he wasn't highly popular to begin with.  And even so, he definitely didn't start that way.
Later in the article, it mentions how many people call Perry an opportunist, which I disagree with.  (I agree with what the article says.  Yes, people have called him that.  I disagree, however, with him being called that.)  However, I will note that he did switch parties back in the day.  (In 1984 he was running for Democratic...something or other, then changed in 1989, which is a notable switch unlike Ron Paul's Libertarian to Republican.)
However, I think everyone can develop and change without being an opportunist.

Other Notable (yet respectable switchers include):
Ronald Reagan
Strom Thurmond
Michele Bachmann (Although she was in high school.  I changed parties in high school too.  Who doesn't?)
Joe Lieberman
Theodore Roosevelt
Donald Trump
And more.

It later outlines his bipartisan pragmatism in Texas (which is exactly what we need as a nation, is it not?)

I wish this article had talked more about Mitt Romney, though...  And, you know, the Tea Party.