Eminence, Thanks for posting.

That comment did not sit right with me AT ALL.

The Tea Party Movement - the movement - was of all sides. Dems, Independents, Republicans - all who said "Taxed Enough Already" - that was the genesis of the movement.   People took tea bags and went to these meetings all over the US Map and protested against the government.

That does NOT mean that they said they are going to join ANY party.

To take advantage of the current situation and say, let's combine it with GOP is just plain inappropriate, and yet another political misstep on her part.

She appears to be under contract to speak up at the convention in Tennessee; she has reaffirmed that she will show up -- emphasizing the people side of the movement, and making NO COMMENTS AT ALL about the Tea Party Nation - the for-profit company and the muck about its formation that has been dredged up recently.. and that seems to have soon led to Michele Bachmann and Marsha Blackburn backing out of their commitment to appear at their Tennessee conference.  I would have preferred that Sarah Palin address the matter head-on rather than slide it under the rug.


But it is clear that Sarah Palin recognizes that the Tea Party Movement -- the MOVEMENT - does not have good foundation to stand on.  This is one of the things that happens when an "independent" movement is owned by ONE person and there is secrecy around that not made known to core members.  The stink causes distrust and tensions that seep out and is palpable in the environment; people back out quickly. Tea Party Movement may suffer this rapidly.  Give the mess underneath that has been dredged up lately, the TP Movement is most certainly in jeopardy...

Unfortunately, the suggestion of combining TPMovement with GOP may hasten that demise, whether or not it is successful proposal.

All this makes me wonder about the potential for an independent Center-based party. To be honest, I was hopeful that TPMovement would turn into that, but it has increasingly turned deeply conservative.  If the current TPMovement combines into GOP, it will openly acknowledge this directional shift and we may be back to the 2-party mode.


-- Edited by Sanders on Monday 1st of February 2010 11:18:49 AM

I was excited about the Tea Party movement when it started, but as Alex said, it has been co-opted. And there's too much Clinton Derangement Syndrome among the right-wingers who now dominate that movement.