[Breitbart.com] A group of conservatives and libertarians in New Hampshire have come up with a plan they hope will block former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) from becoming the Republican party’s nominee for President.
The idea is to hold their own presidential caucus in October and select a candidate behind whom they would all unite.
The group is called the “603 Alliance,” named after the only area code in New Hampshire. According to a report by Politico, the plan was instigated by “years of simmering discontent within the state Republican party,” as conservative, libertarian, and Tea Party activists have grown increasingly frustrated with the moderate Republicans who have won the state’s primary in recent years.
The condensed Republican primary schedule and reduced number of debates planned for this election cycle only heightened their motivation to organize and give their support to a single conservative candidate to defeat Bush.
The frustration goes beyond just moderate presidential candidates like Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA), extending to intraparty fights for control of the state Republican party and ideological battles during primaries.
Two of the 603 Alliance organizers, Tea Party activist Jack Kimball and libertarian Andrew Hemingway, have been on the front lines of these battles. Kimball was briefly the party’s state chairman in 2011 until being ousted by establishment Republicans led by New Hampshire’s top Republican elected officials. Hemingway was defeated in the gubernatorial primary to Walt Havenstein, an establishment candidate who lost the general election last year.
The establishment’s support for former Sen. Scott Brown, who had represented Massachusetts in the Senate for one term before moving to New Hampshire for a second attempt, over more conservative candidates with longer ties to New Hampshire, further grated the nerves of conservatives.