Exclusive: Broken Promises and Broken Covenants – West Orlando Tea Party Proves Incapable of Maintaining Political Independence – Alludes to Potential for Political Violence

An email exchange obtained by TPID reveals the increasing tensions between the independent Florida TEA Party and the West Orlando Tea Party, and documents the extent to which the latter group has allowed itself to be hijacked by the Republican wing of the two-party state in a clear violation of the WOTP's explicitly stated "Promises and Covenants."  First, some background.  Founded in late 2009, the Florida TEA Party is an officially recognized minor party in the Sunshine State.  The party is running a number of candidates for Congress, County Commissioner and the state legislature this November.  In accordance with the spirit of the original Boston Tea Party, the Florida TEA Party articulated the impetus behind the creation of the organization in its Declaration of Independence:

When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for citizens to dissolve the political bands which have heretofore connected them with the two, major, existing political parties and to assume among the powers of the earth, a new political party, with the separate and equal station which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitles it, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

The West Orlando Tea Party, on the other hand, describes itself as an association of "patriotic Independents, Democrats and Republicans, all united in the basic American principals and values on which our country has been built for over 200 years."  The text of the group's Promises and Covenants explicitly asserts that it has "no party affiliation":

No Political Party Affiliation~ This organization is not a political party.  We are not, nor have we, nor will we be an appendage of, affiliated with or a component of any political party.  Citizens of broad political leanings and various political parties (Independent, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, etc.) are all welcome to participate in our activities.

This "promise and covenant" is clearly belied by the West Orlando Tea Party's attacks against the Florida TEA Party, which it denounces on the front page of its website with the following lines: 

There is a political party in Florida that is on the November ballot that calls itself "The Florida Tea Party", but they are not a Tea Party as you know us, they are Tea Party in "name only". This political party has absolutely nothing to do with the actual Tea Party Movement, which includes the West Orlando Tea Party. None of the true Tea Party organizations in Florida endorse, support or are in any way involved or connected to this political party. And, we see such a third political party serving only as a tool to confuse voters and split the conservative vote.

The West Orlando Tea Party is now sponsoring a Town Hall Meeting scheduled for August 12th, the last before the Republican Party primary on August 24th.  In the email exchange obtained by TPID, a staffer for the West Orlando Tea Party advises representatives of the Florida TEA Party not to attend this event on the grounds that they "are the public face of an opposing political party, no different from the Democrat party" [emphasis added].  The message goes on to advise that it would be "smart politics" for representatives of the Florida TEA Party to "stay away from one of your opponent party's events" [emphasis added].  These statements clearly document the West Orlando Tea Party staffer's identification of the group as a Republican Party organization, and indicate the self-conscious transgression of the West Orlando Tea Party's own "promises and covenants."  

Ominously, the message also warns that, if representatives of the Florida TEA Party were to attend the event, the West Orlando Tea Party could not ensure the public's safety, on the chance that other attendees "might react regrettably and jeopardize the public’s safety in response to your appearance."  

It is deeply and sadly ironic that a group united under the banner of the "Tea Party" has so clearly proven incapable of establishing and maintaining its political independence from the legacy parties and effectively allowed itself to become a local arm of the Republican Party's establishmentarian machine in violation of the group's own explicit "promises and covenants."