Tea Party rebels upstaged by the one in Egypt

HOW INCONSIDERATE of the Egyptian protesters to hog up all of the precious TV time when the Tea Party rebels stormed Washington to take their country back. The mainstream media gave the conservative gathering's opening night rites such scant attention you could wonder why they didn't try to persuade Richard Engel to come home for the only true revolution.

The only thing absent from the throng of 10,000 saviors were fifes and drums and a tribute to Betsy Ross. Oh, Sarah Palin,too. She is so confident of her ascendancy in the public venues that she decided to stay away from this C-PAC to tend to her financial empire. Way to go, Sarah!

From the snippets I picked up of the calls to arms, the speakers obsessed on such things as President Obama's socialism, the delusion that he descended from the Montezumans, and that health care reform will lower the average life span of Americans by 20 years. (Think of the fogies on Capitol Hill that it would eliminate!) Rep. Steve King of Iowa, an unintended humorist, said he has a plan to defund ObamaCare. You will be hearing King's name often in a walk-on role in the months leading to the next election.

For these circuses, you merely have to round up the usual subjects to make it a worthwhile night on the town. Michele Bachmann was the keynote speaker, taking great delight in her every word. My favorite, as always, was Newt Gingrich, who for reasons that I can ony partly explain, reminds me of Jackie Gleason's pal, Crazy Guggenheim. Some of my friends might disagree, saying he more closely resembles Crazy Joe Davola of the Seinfeld cast. Gingrich never seems to be talking to anybody in particular as his words wander off into the atmosphere with ease.

I should mention, too, that along came Donald Trump with a surprise appearance that drew a crowd when he said Ron Paul couldn't win. He could have added the names of several others on the scene.

Finally, one of the Tea Party's major architects, Glenn Beck, remained in his classroom with all of the scribbled blackboards, grieving that America will be consumed by a new World Order while Obama joins the Muslim Brotherhood, or the Chinese Communists, whatever. "If you want to call me crazy," Beck babbled, "call me crazy." OK. I will.

P.S. Watch for the delirium over a straw poll at the conference for the presidential candidates. I predict the straw will win.