This was a big night for Indiana Republicans with Herman Cain in town for one dinner and the national chairman at another along with prominent Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, but a small Tea Party gathering near the airport grabbed the spotlight.  It’s one more example of how the 2012 GOP Senate primary, the battle between Richard Mourdock and Richard Lugar, is a race with national implications.

The fall Indiana GOP dinner is a place to see be seen by Republicans,a place where Richard Lugar is a favorite.  But at the airport Radisson, Lugar was a target.  It’s where Freedomworks, a national Tea Party affiliated political action committee, weighed in on the Senate primary endorsing Mourdock.  “There’s this sense that there is something out of control in the nation’s capitol,” said Mourdock, “and there is a sense that there is not much time left to fix the problem.”

And from there Mourdock went to that fall dinner where even the featured speaker had praise for the Tea Party.  “This has brought great enthusiasm and energy to the Republican Party.” said Rep. Paul Ryan, “and to the fiscal conservative movement.”

But Senator Lugar is warning Republicans that the Tea Party and others who are clearly more interested in defeating him than electing Mourdock are outsiders.  “These are people who have great convictions,” said Lugar, “but they’re not Hoosiers and they really have nothing to do with this state.  They’re trying to demonstrate their clout in the Congress and they utilize whoever they can find.”

And in 2012 Lugar is one of just two Senate Republican incumbents with opposition from Freedomworks.  The other is Orrin Hatch of Utah.

At the top of this story we mentioned that Herman Cain was here tonight.  He spoke at the Columbia Club’s annual Beefsteak dinner and there was no access for the media.

But then Cain has already weighted in on the Senate race.  He, too, endorsed Richard Mourdock.