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Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., speaks at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md., in this Friday, March 7, 2014 file photo.

Susan Walsh, Associated Press

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The tea party and especially Sen. Rand Paul won big over the weekend during the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), but that is not stopping establishment GOP politicians like Sen. Mitch McConnell from targeting them, according to the New York Times Carl Hulse.

Top congressional Republicans are targeting conservative activist groups with a goal of undermining their credibility, according to Hulse. The goal is to deny them any Senate primary victories, cut into their fund-raising and diminish them as a future force in Republican politics.

I think we are going to crush them everywhere, Hulse quoted McConnell as saying.

The straw poll at last week's CPAC illustrated that tea party favorites are winning, according to the National Review's Tim Cavanaugh.

Sen. Rand Paul won with 31 percent of the vote, Sen. Ted Cruz came in second with 11 percent and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson came in third with 9 percent.

Cavanaugh writes that the straw poll illustrates a change in the direction of the party, citing poor performances by former power hitters like Gov. Chris Christie and Rep. Paul Ryan.

The libertarian wave continued throughout the conference, which, according to Cavanaugh, followed a pattern that has characterized GOP events since at least 2008: When the small-government zealots are not around, you can hear a pin drop. When a member of the Paul family shows up, theres so much energy in the place it almost seems like Republicans can win an election.

Excerpt from:

Libertarian wave wins big at CPAC

Published: Saturday, 3/8/2014 - Updated: 3 days ago GENERAL ELECTION

BY JIM PROVANCE BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF

COLUMBUS Charlie Earl, the would-be Libertarian candidate for Ohio governor, was removed from the ballot Friday by Secretary of State Jon Husted.

The Republican secretary of state agreed with the findings of his hearing officer, Brad Smith, that petitions submitted by two professional signature gatherers, both independent contractors, were invalid because they did not note on the petitions who paid them, as required by state election law.

Attorney general candidate Steven R. Linnabary, a Columbus civil engineer, also was removed from the ballot. That means no Libertarian qualified for the ballot for any statewide office.

The deadline has already passed for write-in candidates to file with the secretary of states office for both offices, although the Libertarian Party did meet the deadline for write-in candidates for secretary of state and state auditor.

Mr. Husteds announcement came about an hour before the Libertarian Party of Ohio was set to launch its convention at a Worthington hotel, with Mr. Earl scheduled to be the luncheon speaker today.

Party spokesman Aaron Keith Harris said this decision will only fire up the crowd more.

This is a pattern of harassment from a party that is nothing but cowards and bullies, he said. They dont want Ohio voters to have an actual choice on the ballot this November. This will get overturned in federal court.

This is a decision from a [George W.] Bush guy from the [Federal Election Commission] for Husted and is a Republican mafia hit on voting rights in Ohio, Mr. Harris said.

See the article here:

Libertarian candidates off state ballot

hide captionRepublican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky speaks at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md., on Friday.

Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky speaks at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md., on Friday.

If any two issues illustrate how difficult it could be for the part of the Republican Party represented by the social and national security conservatives to bridge their differences with libertarians, same-sex marriage and National Security Agency intelligence are good candidates

Discussions at the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference got testy Friday, when libertarians defended positions out of synch with the more traditional stances that have defined the Republican Party for decades.

At a panel on privacy, for instance, centering on Edward Snowden's revelations about the NSA's data gathering, former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore dramatically held aloft a New York Post front page with photos of Snowden and Russian president Vladimir Putin under the headline "Comrades."

"Edward Snowden is a traitor and a coward," Gilmore said. "The fact is, Edward Snowden betrayed his trust."

Gilmore, who once served as a military intel officer, said Snowden seriously damaged U.S. intelligence efforts. He also accused political leaders who've used Snowden's disclosures to suggest that there's widespread surveillance of average citizens by the federal government of "demagoguery."

Responding to Gilmore, Bruce Fein, a libertarian lawyer who's been involved in a lawsuit against the federal government, said that he ignores the more rampant lawlessness which is "government violating the rule of law."

"All these examples of government lawlessness, total silence on Gov. Gilmore's side," Fein said. "And when the government becomes a lawbreaker, it invites every man and woman to become a law unto themselves."

If there was common ground, it wasn't much on display during this session. That debate also displayed the tricky territory Republicans are going to have to navigate if they are to find a compromise on this issue.

Read more:

CPAC's Conservative-Libertarian Split Could Be Hard To Bridge