Collapse of the far right

Well, perhaps "collapse" is an exaggeration.   But it seems that the days of Tea Party supremacy are over, not only over in the Republican party and the primary campaign, but in much of our civic life.   They were just too extreme.

Sure, they keep passing far right wing legislation in the House, which then dies in the Senate or else with Obama's veto threat.  And look what happened to Michele Bachmann, who used to flaunt herself as being head of the House Tea Party Caucus.   She's now in a fight to retain her seat in the House and is left with a big debt from her silly presidential campaign.

Here are some other signs of the decline:

The latest indication of that is what's happened with Joe Arpaio, the Arizona sheriff who became the hero of the Tea Party crowd for his vehement pursuit of illegal aliens and his defiance of the federal government.

John Dougherty writes from Phoenix for the Huffington Post:

"With fresh calls for Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio to face a federal criminal trial, many are predicting the end of his controversial career. What few people realize outside metropolitan Phoenix is how much Arpaio’s world has already fallen apart around him.

"One-by-one, Arpaio’s closest allies have been forced from power or severed support, leaving the combative 79-year-old sheriff seeking his sixth term increasingly isolated and vulnerable as emboldened foes sharpen their attacks.

"The latest Arpaio political supporter to fall is former Maricopa County attorney Andrew Thomas, who was disbarred April 10 for engaging in unethical conduct to intimidate and smear his and Arpaio’s political adversaries. . . . the [Arizona Supreme Court] opinion made it crystal clear that his unethical and allegedly illegal conduct was the result of his “unholy collaboration” with Arpaio  . .  to use their law enforcement powers to retaliate against critics."

A federal grand jury has been investigating Arpaio for three years for allegedly abusing his power to go after his opponents.   Many are expecting a federal indictment of Arpaio in the near future.

Further, his closest ally in the state legislature lost a recall election recently, along with the state senate president who spearheaded the passing of Arizona's controversial immigration law.  The latter had once been Arpaio's deputy, and they worked closely together.

A prominent Phoenix attorney, who requested the federal civil rights investigation, said:  “We are witnessing the end of the Joe Show. . . .  I believe he will be indicted within the next 30 days.”

On top of this, Jan Brewer, the controversial Arizona governor -- who has rarely missed an opportunity to display her right-wing credentials -- has just vetoed a bill that would have allowed firearms to be carried into government buildings.

Maybe the worst of the craziness is about over.

Ralph