By now you know most of the "who won, who lost" as far as the candidates are concerned in the mega-round of primaries held in 11 states this Tuesday.  But what we're more interested in is the bigger picture.  Who are the big "winners and losers" based on how things turned out?

The Winners

Sarah Palin: Palin had a really good night.  In South Carolina's GOP gubernatorial primary, the candidate she backed, three-term state representative Nikki Haley came from fourth place to first (and within one point of winning a four-way primary without a runoff) in the little more than two weeks since Palin's endorsement.  And in Nevada, Palin endorsed another state representative Sharon Angle...who was also in last place...and also went on to finish first.  She also backed Carly Fiorina in California who won that state GOP's senate nomination.

The Tea Party movement: Although Democrats and pundits have belittled it, the Tea Party movement is now proving it can deliver the goods.  See previous notes on South Carolina and Nevada. In South Carolina's GOP primary, 39% of voters self-identified with the Tea Party movement. Add to that Rand Paul's recent win in Kentucky and you can't really draw any conclusion other than the coordinated backing of Tea Party activists matters.  Time will tell if it translates into real change in government, but in the meantime, the movement has to be taken seriously.  read more »