If you can’t beat them, join them. That is allegedly the latest maxim of local Democratic Parties, as they have attempted to usurp the “Tea Party” title in order to put forth imposter candidates to steal votes from the GOP and true Tea Party candidates.
According to Fox News, “In New Jersey, a ‘Tea Party’ candidate surfaces but local activists haven’t heard of him. In Michigan, a Democratic operative appears closely tied to a slate of candidates running under the Tea Party banner. In Florida conservative activists are locked in court over the right to use the Tea Party name.”
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While it seems like a conspiracy, local Tea Party activists have contacted both the media and election officials to make them aware of the trickery. It seems that the plan is for the fraudster “Tea Party" candidates to split the votes needed by the GOP to take back Congress in November.
In Michigan, Traverse City Tea Party activist Jason Gillman produced evidence confirming the accusations in late July. Official election documents showed 23 Michigan Tea Party candidates, of which at least nine “had affidavits notarized by a local operative for the Oakland County Democratic Party”.
Calling it the “smoking gun,” Gillman remarks, “It’s obvious it’s a Democratic play.”
While Tea Party organizations have endorsed Democratic candidates in the past (i.e. Walt Winnick of Idaho), the nine candidates in question did not appear to espouse the ideals of the Tea Party movement or have Tea Party backgrounds.
Gillman’s story was corroborated by Oakland County Democratic Party chairman Mike McGuinness, who admitted that the actions taken by OCDP operative Jason Bauer were not “sanctioned” by the local party, but that the party will have to “assess internally” how to proceed.
In response to the imposters, Gillman and Tea Party activists are working to invalidate the fraudster “Tea Party” candidates.
Meanwhile, Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, a Republican, publically denounced the group of Democrats behind the imposters, who are now seeking political party status on the November ballot under the Tea Party name.
Patterson notes, “That Tea Party is Democrats who have gone out and pretended to be tea party activists to create their own party. It’s rather diabolical if they get away with it.”
According to TPMMuckraker.com, “evidence is mounting that the party is a front for Democratic supporters hoping to rescue embattled Democrats this fall.” Nearly 60,000 signatures gathered to earn a place on the ballot were collected by a Democratic firm called Progressive Campaigns, Inc.
The signatures are currently under review, but a final decision over whether the signatures will be counted will not likely be made until August 13.
Unfortunately, Tea Partiers across the nation face difficulties when pursuing legal action against imposters since the Tea Party movement is not a unified, central organization. Because of that, it is difficult to ascertain who is legitimate and who is not.
The courts have proved to be of little help.
In April, a Nevada judge ruled that Senate candidate Scott Ashjian was able to run under the Tea Party name despite claims that he was not a member of the local Tea Party movement. Nevada’s then-Republican senatorial candidate Danny Tarkanian told Fox News that “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s supporters may have entered Ashjian into the race to help Reid.” Reid has denied the charges.
Tea Party activists in Florida are engaged in a court battle to determine which are the legitimate Tea Party candidates. For nearly a year, Florida Tea Partiers have accused local lawyer Fred O’Neal and former radio host Doug Guetzloe of “hijacking” the movement by creating the “Tea Party Group.”
Republican Party of Florida Executive Director Ronnie Whitaker reacted to the underhanded efforts. “Rather than running credible candidates who support the non-partisan Tea Party grassroots movement, these spoiler candidates are mostly former Democrats running in seats hundreds of miles away from their actual homes.”
O’Neal and Guetzloe continue to reject the allegations.
Likewise, the Florida Tea Partiers have tied the efforts of O’Neal and Guetzloe to Democratic Representative Alan Grayson. Grayson contends that he is not affiliated with the Tea Party but purchased time on Guetzloe’s show to target a more conservative office.
Florida Tea Party activists, assisted by political consultant Michael Caputo, have pushed for a judge to declare candidates running under the “Florida Tea Party” banner as having no connection to other Tea Party activists in the state.
Similar attempts to hijack the Tea Party title are seen in the New Jersey congressional race between Democrat Rep. John Adler, Republican Jon Runyan, and third-party Tea Party candidate, Peter DeStefano.
But conservative Tea Partiers in New Jersey are unfamiliar with DeStefano, who claimed that his decision to enter the race came about “because there is no true conservative in this election.”
Jon Runyan contends that DeStefano is in fact a “plant” of John Adler to steal vital votes.
In the Pennsylvania race to replace Democratic Rep. Joe Sestak, third-party candidate Jim Schneller has been called an “imposter.” Philadelphia Daily News reports that Schneller’s nomination papers were strewn with the names of local Democrats.
Republican Pat Meehan asserts that it is a set up by Democratic State Representative Bryan Lentz.
While the presence of the imposters on the ballots in November is likely to confuse voters, true Tea Party candidates advocate fiscal responsibility and limited government. Candidates who do not support those key tenets are likely fraudsters.
Photo: AP Images
