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Missouri’s primary elections are Tuesday. This week, Tea Party groups across the Show-Me State voiced their disapproval of a Minnesota Congresswoman who herself associates with the Tea Party movement because she endorsed a candidate in Missouri’s US Senate Race...and they don't agree with her. KSMU’s Jennifer Moore has details.
The Missouri Tea Party groups sent out a joint press release this week titled “Missouri Tea Party Groups Have Not Endorsed Roy Blunt For US Senate.”
On Thursday, we spoke to Eric Farris, an attorney and the director of the Branson Tea Party Coalition. “The point that we’re trying to get across is that no candidate has been endorsed by any of our 28 Missouri Tea Party groups,” Farris said.
He said the reason why the Tea Party Groups felt the press release was necessary was because Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, who associates with the Tea Party Movement, announced she is coming to Missouri to campaign for Roy Blunt.
The news release was critical of Blunt for having voted for the TARP “bailout” bill and “Cash for Clunkers,” both of which won the disapproval of Tea Party members, who pride themselves in being fiscally conservative.
“There’s been some concern among those who are involved in the Tea Party Movement concerning some of the votes that Congressman Roy Blunt has made,” Farris said.
Still, Farris said he cannot speak on behalf of various Tea Party participants about who their candidate of choice might be.
“There are 16 candidates across several different political parties who are running in the primaries next Tuesday, and we really want everyone to take a look at every single one of those candidates. See which one fits best within the core values of the Tea Party movement, which is fiscal responsibility, Constitutionally-limited government, and free market values,” Farris said.
Farris said he’s expecting a “very good turnout” among people who identify with the Tea Party movement in Tuesday’s primary election. He says “Proposition C” on the ballot in Missouri is important to many Tea Party participants; that’s the ballot measure that aims to override recent federal health care legislation mandating that most Americans carry health insurance by 2014 or face fines.