Bogus
Conservatives would vote for Tea party reps regardless in 2014 even if nothing was done this month.
Getting the Senate back takes more then tea party votes though. There would have been gains in the House, and the Senate most likely would flip.
Right now centrist voters are totally ditching the GOP brand and this will stick the longer the shut down goes on and default is threatened.
The joke of all this is conservatives actually NOT coming out to vote for tea party candidates in 2014. Cons would have been their regardless of this suicide mission occurring or not.
Instead, O has new life and momentum going into 2014, when he should have been rendered an irrelevent lame duck by December
It is a false premise to suggest that people would vote for the Tea Party if they act more like establishment Republicans who are similarly loathed by conservative base.
You have to be an opposition party be seen as an opposition party.
The failure of Obamacare isn't going away.
Pure speculation. No one knows what the issues will be a year from now and what will drive voters to the polls.