They're not a new or "burgeoning" phenomenon... they're simply part of the GOP.
And here's the data to prove it:
While tea party activists have described themselves as political free agents disgusted with both parties, a new poll by Quinnipiac University shows that a majority have a close connection to the GOP.
Almost three quarters of those who identified themselves as part of the tea party movement – 74 percent – also identified themselves as Republicans or independents who lean Republican, according to the poll. Only 16 percent of tea partiers said they are Democrats or Democratic-leaning independents.
And 60 percent of voters who identify themselves as members of the tea party movement have a favorable impression of the Republican Party, compared to only 20 percent who view the GOP unfavorably.
Put another way, more than one fifth – 21 percent - of those who described themselves as Republicans said they also considered themselves part of the tea party movement, compared to 15 percent of independents and 5 percent of Democrats.
The poll was based on interviews with 1,900 voters. Thirteen percent responded yes to the question: “Do you consider yourself part of the tea party movement?” – a percentage roughly equal to the size of the African-American electorate.
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http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/34913.htmlThey're not some fed up group of "real" Americans that are disgusted with "both parties".
They're Republicans. The "Republican"
brand is so badly damaged that they needed to come up with a new word to describe themselves to try and sell their philosophy to a gullible public.
Dick Armey and others basically sat in back rooms and decided that they couldn't sell discontent under the name "Republican" after the past 8 years.
It was focus-grouped, I'm sure.
In any case... Tea Party = Republican. It's not a "third" party.
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