After his stunning Senate victory in Massachusetts, Scott Brown was hailed by many on the right as a possible leader for the nascent Tea Party movement, a possible 2012 Republican nominee, and the face of the new movement. 

Today, he proved he is none of those:

A modest job-creation bill advanced in the U.S. Senate on Monday as the chamber's newest Republican bucked his party and sided with Democrats on a $15 billion package of tax cuts and highway spending.  Republican Scott Brown joined four other Republicans, 55 Democrats and two independents to overcome a procedural hurdle that sets up a final vote later this week. ... Brown said the bill was not perfect but would help put people back to work. "I hope my vote today is a strong step toward restoring bipartisanship in Washington," he said in a statement.

This is obviously idiotic.  We didn't back Scott Brown so that he would restore bipartisanship, and we didn't elect him so that he would vote with Democrats on yet another moronic spending bill.  We elected Brown because were sick and tired of the Democrats' attempt to hijack the American economy and turn the private sector into a function of the public sector.  Should we regret electing Brown?  Of course not -- he'd be far better than any Democrat in that seat.  But this underscores the fact that the Republican Party and the Tea Party movement are not synonymous, and that many Republicans still don't get it.

More than that, this demonstrates that people on the right need to stop looking for a figurehead.  Sarah Palin is not it.  Scott Brown is not it.  The reason the Tea Party movement is successful is because it has no recognizable leaders, no individuals others can point to and say, "He's the one in charge."  Because we're the ones in charge, not any single figure.  Leave it to the left to deify their leaders; I'd prefer to rely on the wisdom of the American people.  Reagan was the product of a movement, not the savior of one.  Let's produce our own leaders, not rely on the media or the heads of the Republican Party to tell us who those leaders should be.