Much of the 2011-2012 Republican presidential campaign seemed to consist of Mitt Romney vs. the hottest Tea Party candidate of the moment.
Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum: They all came in and had their moment in the sun before being vanquished by the more established — and better funded — candidate.
So on Tuesday morning, it was a bit of a surprise to hear that the presumptive GOP nominee is actually a Tea Party guy.
The declaration came from Ron Kaufman, a senior adviser and longtime friend of the governor, at a discussion at the Carne Chophouse in Ybor City.
This article appears in Aug 23-29, 2012.