NY-23 is a perfect example of why this nonsense should stop.
But will it? Will Hoffman's defeat be enough to stamp out enough of the enthusiasm and funding for grassroots conservatives and the Club for Growth? I'm betting that it won't. The closeness of this race is only - to steal a commonly abused GOP catchphrase - going to embolden the "terrorists." They may be able to take down a few more conservative Democrats with these candidates but they certainly won't be winning back many of the seats where Democrats have encroached on former moderate Republican territory. If the conservative wing of the party brands candidates like Rob Simmons in CT or Kelly Ayotte in NH as the next Dede Scozzafava, the GOP is going to be licking its wounds again a year from now.