She’s been called an “embarrassment beyond words,” “cringe-worthy,”  and courtesy of Meghan McCain, “a nutjob… Christine O’Donnell is making a mockery of running for public office.”

Yep, this is what Delaware feels like .. or used to.

Well… yeah. But all I can think is: What happened to my peeps? I grew up in Wilmington Delaware, my dad (and my husband’s dad) both worked for DuPont, I lived in Webster Farm, my husband lived in Green Acres, and we went to Mt. Pleasant High School. Delaware may not be the most fascinating place to grow up, but it has its own affable, sweet charm – most of which derives from the fact that it feels like a throwback to some earlier era where you knew all your neighbors, kids played outside, and people were moderate, predictable and polite. Now thanks to Christine, it’s become the epicenter of hate and hysteria– Grand Central for the off-the-rails Tea Party Express. What the heck is going on in the Blue Hen state??

Christine O’Donnell has run for the Senate three times – with almost no qualifications and with very limited success. She is singularly unprepared to serve in this 6-year, powerful role, but somehow that doesn’t seem to faze her or her supporters. She’s earned $3800 or less for the last three years, is facing foreclosure and an IRS lien, and has almost certainly violated numerous campaign laws. The only job she does have is as a “politician,” yet she’s managed to portray herself as the ultimate outsider and Sarah Palin wannabe. If the thought of her being a Senator weren’t so terrifying, she’d be merely pathetic.

But what freaks me out is that clearly, O’Donnell is symptomatic of something much larger and more pernicious going on across America. Somehow, the Tea Party Express and far right Republicans (funded by the Koch brother oil billionaires) have managed to harness populist rage and get people who are truly suffering to shoot themselves directly in the foot—in the mistaken impression that they’re taking out Obama, Muslims, and Mexicans immigrants.

Christine’s followers are hysterically against taxes, but in favor of the Bush tax cuts to the rich – that will contribute more to the U.S. budget deficit than the Obama stimulus, the TARP program, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and revenue lost to the recession put together. They’re in favor of repealing health care reform that will benefit them. They’re in favor of ending government regulation of banks and investment firms– that will protect them from the outrageous excesses that caused this recession. It’s truly unbelievable how corporate interests have managed to channel this inchoate anti-government rage into a movement that runs absolutely counter to the best interests of  its most vocal adherents. And ignorance has become a badge of honor.

But….I went to see His Holiness the Dalai Lama yesterday and I’m going to get to sit in his presence again today .. so I’m trying not to be a hater and harsh out about Christine. No, I’m simply going to take an opposite positive action.

My $100 today is going to candidate Chris Coons’ campaign in the hope that Christine O’Donnell will be defeated and simply go away. So I can be proud to be a Delaware Blue Hen again. To join me, click here!