From the Desk of

Kevin Tracy

2009-10-16

Although the TEA Party movement has successfully delayed and watered down parts of Obama's socialist health care reform plan, there has been an alarming amount of infighting among organizers of the various different factions within the greater TEA Party movement. Such would be expected between the main groups of supporters - namely Republicans and Libertarians, but the divisions have been far more diverse than just that... and not all of them have made sense either.

This one however is LONG overdue. The group "TEA Party Patriots" - which serves as a central support group and listing organization for TEA Parties and Patriots groups across the country - has sent out an e-mail to ALL of its supporters condemning a conservative talk radio host and one of the figureheads of "Our Country Deserves Better" (these are the folks who put together the TEA Party Express): Mark Williams. Although his rhetoric wasn't bad at the Mishawaka rally I spoke at a few months ago, it turns out that it had been erratic, racist, and flat out lies at other places. These words were not only targeting President Obama, but also local law enforcement officers and even supporters of the TEA Party movement in Sacramento, California.

Here's the condemnation from TEA Party Patriots:

Tea Party Patriots Statement on Tea Party Express
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Tea Party Patriots wishes to confirm that it does not directly or indirectly support or endorse any activities of Our Country Deserves Better, the political action committee (PAC) responsible for the 'Tea Party Express' bus tour conducted from 8/28 through 9/12 of this year, and an upcoming tour recently announced.

The Vice Chairman of OCDB and spokesman for the Tea Party Express, Mark Williams, has described President Obama as an "Indonesian Muslim turned welfare thug," and the "Racist in Chief", phrases he defended recently in an interview on CNN. Tea Party Patriots disagrees strongly with President Obama on many issues, but we believe such statements are inappropriate and harmful to the healthy debate our country demands on challenging issues. Furthermore, Williams' antics play into the hands of mainstream media attempts to paint the Tea Party movement as a racist, radical fringe as opposed to the genuine grassroots movement representing all walks of American life that it truly is. In addition, in June, at a Tea Party Patriots event in Sacramento, Williams was requested to stop his verbal criticism of local law enforcement officers who were trying to stop him from interfering with other lawfully assembled citizens. Among other things, Williams used his megaphone to warn those present that they needed to move away from the officers by shouting through his megaphone, "Trust me, I grew up in Boston, you don't want a cop on horseback swinging at your head." People on the scene objected to his behavior, and in fact, law enforcement officers on the scene were polite and respectful, and were merely trying to get Mr. Williams to respect the rights of other individuals who had lawful permits. Full video of the incident is available on request. Subsequent to the event, Williams issued a written apology for his outrageous behavior towards law enforcement officers (again, available on request). Again, this type of behavior is precisely the brush with which our opposition wishes to paint us, and we believe it is important to decisively separate ourselves from people who behave in this way.

Furthermore, Williams directly attacked the genuine heart and soul of the tea party movement on, of all days, the morning of September 12th. While patriots from around the country were gathering in Washington, Williams posted a vitriolic blog entry about the August 28th Sacramento Tea Party event (where the Tea Party Express started its tour) in which he declared that he "can now report that at the Sac828 'Tea Party' event was anything but", describing it as "a rally representing tax-subsidized agricultural and industrial interests" whose speakers were "lobbyists and other representatives of big business." On the contrary, the organizers and speakers at the Sacramento event represented a tremendous grassroots effort on the part of hardworking local organizers from across California fighting the worst aspects of big government gone wild. Williams further bragged in an email to TPP leadership that "The national media embedded with me has been waiting for me to publish this story [with a link to his blog post] so that they can run with it." On the day when our fellow patriots were gathering in and focusing all eyes on the amazing event in Washington, Mark Williams was apparently focused on promoting divisive and false accusations about the Tea Party movement to the mainstream media.

Finally, Our Country Deserves Better is a PAC. And while we have no problems with PACs, and they definitely have their place in the political system today, they fulfill a very different role than the tea parties. If you take the time to review OCDB's FEC filings, you will find pages and pages of expenditures for Republican candidates and against Democrat candidates. Equally important, the political knowledge, muscle and primary operations of the PAC appear to come from a political consulting firm in Sacramento called Russo Marsh & Rogers. A review of the RMR website shows that they are long time Republican political consultants. As of this writing, their website appears to indicate that their electoral work across the country has been on behalf of Republican candidates whom they are paid to represent, and has been for many years. And if one looks at the FEC filings, it appears that the largest portion of the money raised by OCDB gets paid directly to Russo Marsh & Rogers. Please look at the filings for yourselves and make your own determination.

While there is nothing improper about this type of partisanship, it is our belief that this is not what the tea parties are about. Tea Party Patriots has worked very hard to be issue oriented regardless of political party affiliation. We support our core values: fiscal responsibility, Constitutionally limited government, and free markets over any political party. In order to remain non-partisan, we must separate ourselves from organizations that are partisan and are attempting to raise money using the non-partisan tea party movement.

Because of Williams' actions and his leadership role in OCDB and the Tea Party Express, and because of the partisan fundraising nature of OCDB and the Tea Party Express, the Tea Party Patriots cannot and will not support OCDB and in particular urges all local tea party activists not to participate in or support OCDB's second national Tea Party Express bus tour. We firmly believe that the fight for limited government and the Tea Party movement has room for many groups of all types, and we effectively work with many of them. But it has no room for those who attack grassroots organizers, use the tea party movement for partisan political fund raising, or who go out of their way to make offensive statements that serve only to drive people away from our cause.

Sincerely,

Tea Party Patriots, Inc.

Note: Williams un-published his 9/12 blog post several days after posting it, and so the link no longer works. He has never apologized or retracted his statements, however; the full text of his post can be provided upon request.

Contact Information

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Tea Party Patriots National Coordinator Team
Debbie Dooley, Mike Gaske, Kellen Giuda, Ryan Hecker, Jenny Beth Martin, Mark Meckler, Rob Neppell, Sallie Oljar, Diana Reimer, Billie Tucker, and Dawn Wildman

Jenny Beth Martin (jennybethm@gmail.com, note new phone number: 770-878-1550)
Dawn Wildman (dmwtpp11@yahoo.com)
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Join Our Mailing List

I made that part in bold towards the top because it's the entire inspiration of this post. I normally condemn, or at least wash my hands, of any infighting taking place within the TEA Party movements at local, state, and national levels simply because it's not worth having dirty hands what what's been a successful grassroots movement that, honestly, doesn't need leaders beyond proactive local organizers. If these people want me to speak, I'm more than happy to convey a respectful fire and brimstone message to the good men and women in the grassroots who came out to show their support for the health debate the TEA Party Patriots mentioned in their above e-mail. That's not an endorsement of leaders, but simply an endorsement of the people who come to these things, totally oblivious to the often mind numbing political posturing within the ranks of organizers and between organizations.

However, I'm getting involved in this one because the TEA Party Patriots are exactly correct and they've pretty much said what I've been yelling since the midst of the 2008 elections: mindless attacks on Obama's race, religion, and patriotism are only going to cause our message trouble. I have to admit, while there were a few bad apples in Mishawaka, including one of the organizers of the national 9/12 movement, I am pleased to report that most of the people I've seen in Illinois, Michigan, and Northwest Indiana have been very savvy of public perception and are totally aware that the media is breathing down their necks, waiting for them to screw up with a single inappropriate sign.

The problem is that it only takes one nut case supporter of Mark Williams... or one nut case like Mark Williams... to pull out his assault rifle he has a legitimate carry permit for and start shooting his own people in the foot. We're smart enough to know what's acceptable and not acceptable behavior, but too seldom are we willing to step up and condemn the God awful behavior that's proving time and again to be more harmful to us than the people it's targeted at.

Major kudos to the national TEA Party Patriots organization for stepping up to the plate and doing what needed to be done.

Archived Comments

Waco Tea Party
This is simply childish. We're on the same team working for the same ends... So Why in God's name can we not work together to achieve them? The mass e-mail sent out to the TPP e-mail list was childish and exposes the true nature of the TPP board and staff to the rest of the world.
There is no need to alienate conservative friends in our ultimate goal to transform our government from a bunch of liberal tax-and-spend elites to a true limited republic based on our founding values.
The Tea Party Patriots team is going to need to learn to play in the same sand box with other groups and organizations to obtain the larger goal of transforming our government. We should be focused on building these alliances and nurturing them as we move forward, not expose petty infighting to the rest of the world. This is a poor move by tea party patriots and has completely lost my support and the support of many others here in Central Texas.
If another tea party group or conservative group comes out with statements that you don't agree with, are you going to throw them under the same bus you threw TPE under? Will they get the same treatment with an e-mail blast to your e-mail list? Why would anyone want to partner with TPP knowing you have treated an ally in the fight for American Freedom like this?
Your arguments against Mark Williams are petty. I may not agree with him all the time, and his delivery is harsh. Yet you have to admit, the American people are expecting a harsh response to the absurd policies that come out of Washington. We're expecting a harsh response when Nancy Pelosi asks us where are swastikas are and calls us un-American. We're expecting a harsh response when the President of the United States plays the race card against us.
His PAC helps get conservative Republicans elected... GOOD! That's what we need! The ultimate goal for all of us should be to get conservatives in office. When is the last time a conservative ran with a D after his name?
Your petty differences with this guy have caused an irreparable rift in two groups seeking the same means. That is unconscionable. You either need to go back to the drawing board to figure out how you can work with other groups and build strong conservative alliances, or you need to get out of the tea party name and let the grassroots lead the charge, because, let's face it, we're doing it so much better. We're spreading the message. We're building alliances while you're breaking them down. Get your priorities right or get out of the way. We don't need this mess in Texas.
Michael
Waco Tea Party
We wish the Tea Party Patriots good luck, and God Bless each of them. We hope to see you along the highway, hopefully with less mud being slung from your bus.

Agree
Yeah these people don't represent us..and local tea party movements should be really careful NOT to get involved in candidates fundraising or PACs. They can survey, interview, and list candidates, candidates can speak at tea party events, but the tea party groups must NOT endorse them or fundraise for them.

Kevin Tracy
Parts of it are petty, but there are MAJOR problems with what Mark Williams is doing and it's not healthy for the movement. Normally, the infighting is because different people are making different kinds of petty power grabs. That bugs the heck out of me. But this was a legitimate problem and I'm glad they're stepping up and making the criticisms that need to be made.

Kevin Tracy
Agreed, Agree!

james
""Mark Williams has repeatedly refused to back down from and apologize for calling Obama a racist, traitor, and Muslim."
You ARE kidding, right?
You are engaging in this effort to destroy the Tea Party movement because this guy won't "apologize" for:
1) Calling Obama a "racist" (you really think that Obama is not?)
2) A "traitor" (how many American kids have been killed in Afghan since Obama reneged on his promise to send reinforcements?)
3) A "Muslim" (what kind of bigot are you? Since when is calling someone a "Muslim" something to be apologized for? Especially given that in Obama's father put that on official forms and Obama himself said in his first book that he was?)
Is there a money trail from the Democratic National Committee to your pocket?

james
"Mark Williams has repeatedly refused to back down from and apologize for calling Obama a racist, traitor, and Muslim."
You took down my questions about this Kevin, must have been a mistake.
What did this guy say that calls for an apology? Pointing out Obama's confessed racial issues (read Obama's books), considering a "commander in chief"+ who has now killed close to 100 US troops by refusing them reinforcements a "traitor" or calling him a Muslim (Obama's own father did that too).
On that last point, do YOU have some sort of problem with Muslims that would require an apology should you be labeled such?
You have a hidden agenda Kevin and upon close examination I think that it has very little to do with tea, spokespeople or this movement. Why don't you tell us?

Kevin Tracy
James, I need to moderate all comments from first time commenters. Your comment appeared to you only; and if you refreshed the page, it would have been gone.
1. Obama is not a racist.
2. Obama is not a traitor and I honestly believe he's just that incompetent.
3. When "Muslim" is used as an insult, it's insulting to the over 1 Billion Muslims in the world, including millions in the United States. Obama is a Christian and saying otherwise is just stupid. Being insanely pro-choice like Barack Obama is even less acceptable in the Muslim community than it is in the Evangelical Christian community.

John Gaver
This all sounds like more conservatives playing alpha male games. Rather than work together for the common good, the TPP and TPE leaders want to play "My group is more important than yours." The only difference between them and liberal groups is that with liberals, after some initial posturing, the obvious less effective group will fall in line with the more effective group.
That's the secret to the success of the liberals and RINOs and why they now control both the Whitehouse and Congress, even though more voters identify themselves as conservative than liberal. While the liberals may not always agree on everything, they stick with the one who is on top and work from within to make changes. I mean, think about it. Who would have ever believed that Hillary (the quintessential alpha male) would ever take a job in the Obama administration?
I am proudly a part of both groups. But, if the TPP leadership wants to force us to chose between the two, the decision will not even be close. That's because one group is making news every day and keeping taxes, Obamacare, bailouts and other of Obama's socialist agenda front and center on the news, while the other is seldom heard from, outside the Tea Party movement. One group cuts to the chase and pulls no punches, which is what is badly needed, while the other group has fallen into the liberal trap of playing politically correct word games.
The fact of the matter is that the TPE has emerged as a leader, while the TPP, although doing a yeoman's job and a necessary one, at that, has failed to lead. I'm certainly far from being Mark Williams' biggest fan. But, all this jockeying for power only hurts the movement. It's now time for conservatives to take a page from the liberal playbook. It's time for the TPP leadership to admit that they are not now and will not soon be recognized as leaders of the Tea Party movement and stop their alpha male games.
We need both groups - one keeping us in the news and the other working the precincts. But, if this one-up-manship keeps up, supporters are going to feel like they have to choose and we will end up losing a lot of precinct level workers that we really need. But, better that than lose the media and lose the only people who refuse to play the liberals' game of political correctness.
The fact is that although Mark Williams may be a jerk, he is a successful jerk, who gets out there and keeps our movement in the news, to the degree that even the liberal media have trouble downplaying us any more. The TPP just don't have such a person (jerk or otherwise). In fact the the TPP leadership seems to have fallen into the liberals' trap, by being afraid to even allude to the fact that Obama is an out and out racist, who is determined to tear this great nation down to the level of the nation where he was born. Sure, Williams probably goes a little too far, at times, calling Obama a Muslim. I have no doubt that Obama is a Muslim. But I don't see that as a bad thing, unless he turns out to be of the radical sort, which we have no way of knowing, at this time. Williams tends to use that term disparagingly, which probably does no good. But who knows. He may be right. Anyway, warts and all, Williams is "generally" the kind of person who we need out there, keeping the pressure on and pulling no punches.
I see no reason why the two groups can't work together. If the leaders of the two groups just can't live with the thought that there is another group out there that they don't control and one just has to be the alpha male, then there is no doubt that the alpha male will be the TPE. But however it shakes out, we need to work as a team, to defeat the liberals on all this spending, its associated tax increases and insurmountable debt.
We fight among ourselves, while the liberals mend fences. No wonder they’re on top now, while our leaders are still playing alpha male games. Sad… Very sad...

Kevin Tracy
I don't mind jerks in politics. I mind offensive and hateful remarks that take us off message and play directly into the message of Keith Olberman that we're all bigots and racists. I don't have a problem with the TPE - I have a problem with Mark Williams. And if you read the TPP remarks, they make it pretty obvious that Mark Williams is the problem, not the TPE.