The race marked the third time that tea party activists, a collection of disparate groups without a central political structure, have placed their stamp on Republican races.
Political novice Rand Paul rode support from Tea Party activists to a rout in Kentucky’s Republican Senate primary Tuesday night, jolting the GOP establishment and providing fresh evidence of voter discontent in a turbulent midterm election season.
“I have a message, a message from the tea party, a message that is loud and clear and does not mince words: We have come to take our government back,” Paul told supporters after sealing his triumph over Secretary of State Trey Grayson.
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In an interview with The Associated Press, Palin called Paul’s victory a “wake-up call for the country.”
According to his website, Paul, 47 and an ophthalmologist, is a “career doctor, not a politician.” He favors a balanced budget and paying off the national debt over time, but the website mentions no specifics.
He opposes all federal bailouts of private industry and government subsidies for alternative energy sources such as solar and wind power.
He has called Washington lobbyists a “distinctly criminal class” and favors banning lobbying and campaign contributions by anyone holding a federal contract exceeding $1 million.