LITTLE ROCK — Even as it gains momentum and attracts substantial donations after a string of primary-election wins, the “Tea Party” movement is facing the challenges of a grass-roots organization that has no central leadership or single goal.
On Tuesday, word spread that Tea Party Nation had canceled for lack of interest the convention it planned to hold in Las Vegas next month. Some Tea Party activists have frowned upon the Tennesseebased group, which was accused of profiteering when it charged $500 for admission to its first convention, in Nashville, in the spring.
And Tea Party Patriots, a national group based in Atlanta, announced that it would distribute a $1 million donation to local groups to encourage conservatives to vote in November’s midterm elections. The money also will be put toward longer-term organization-building efforts to keep the movement alive as the 2012 presidential election approaches, organizers said.
But group leaders wouldn’t say where the money came from, fueling the perception that the movement relies on monied business and political interests that aren’t as ideologically pure as its grassroots supporters.
The Tea Party movement, a loose confederation of conservative activists who began organizing shortly after President Barack Obama took office, is best-known for its protests in Washington and elsewhere against what its members view as out-ofcontrol spending. But the organization also includes national groups that have staged some of the demonstrations, donated money to politicalcampaigns and organized other events.
Judson Phillips, the founder of Tea Party Nation, did not return e-mail and phone requests for an interview.
Several Tea Party organizers in Nevada said they did not encourage activists to attend the convention because of a view that Tea Party Nation is more profiteer than genuine grass-roots organizer. Critics assailed the group in the spring not only for the cost of admission to its first convention but also for paying its keynote speaker, Sarah Palin, a $100,000 fee.
“I think they were being a little bit opportunistic because the spotlight is here in Nevada with the Senate race,” said Frank Ricotta, a founder of the Nevada Patriots in Las Vegas. “They were trying to come in not so much to gather with the local people but to really just put on an event that maybe didn’t have a good intention to begin with. It looked like a commercial event, and it just never reallygained traction because the local Tea Party leaders here didn’t get behind it.”
Tea Party Nation originally scheduled its second convention for July, but Phillips canceled that event, saying that Las Vegas would be too hot and that activists would rather convene in the fall. But this time around, some activists in Nevada said they were unaware of the convention, leaving open questions about the breadth of Tea Party Nation’s organization and reach.
“I didn’t even know that was going on,” said Lee Kennedy, 46, a casino executive in Carson City who recently founded a group called Faith, Family and Freedom. “Whoever was putting that together obviously didn’t get the word out, because I didn’t know about it.”
Front Section, Pages 5 on 09/22/2010