Meet your new government

• "In North Carolina, national party officials make no secret of their displeasure at the possibility of the GOP banner being carried by a "tea-party"-backed candidate with an apparent history of religious zealotry and drug use. In divorce records, the man's ex-wife said he planned to raise his stepfather from the dead in New Jersey.

• "In South Carolina, the tea party favorite for governor is trying to bat down accusations of infidelity.

• "In Nevada, a leading conservative contender is facing questions about her ties to the Church of Scientology.

• "And the newest hero of the tea party movement, Rand Paul, who won the GOP Senate primary in Kentucky, startled more-mainstream Republicans by questioning part of the historic 1964 Civil Rights Act that allowed the government to force lunch counters to desegregate."

Pass the popcorn, please.