- Sarah Palin's keynote address is getting a lot of attention despite her rejection of an invitation to speak at the CPAC. Photo: AP
POLITICO 44
Sarah Palin’s plan to deliver the keynote address — for a fee — at next month’s first-ever National Tea Party Convention is getting renewed attention in light of her rejection Thursday of an invitation to speak at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.The decision to blow off CPAC — traditionally seen as the year’s must-attend event for the conservative establishment — in favor of a little-known convention is prompting some soul-searching among CPAC supporters, and is being interpreted as a calculated play by the former Alaska governor to cast herself as the potential 2012 GOP presidential candidate of the high-energy, anti-establishment tea party movement.
But it’s also renewed questions about her political judgment and brought scrutiny on the Tea Party Convention, which kicks off two weeks before CPAC’s Feb. 18 start date and has cast itself to some degree as a more homegrown, grass-roots alternative to the traditional conservative conference.
“It’s a missed opportunity for her, for sure,” said GOP operative Brad Blakeman. “CPAC is an established mainstay of conservatism that those seeking to be active in 2010, 2012 and beyond should take advantage of to be seen and heard, while the tea parties are a manifestation of frustration that is loosely organized and hasn’t proven itself at the polls.”
Palin has committed to speaking at April’s Southern Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans, considered a must-attend for prospective candidates for the 2012 Republican nomination.
Still, the CPAC snub, combined with the tea party commitment, were clearly intended to send a message, asserted Erick Erickson, founder of the influential conservative blog RedState.com, which is owned by a publishing firm that is co-sponsoring CPAC. “I get why she did it,” he said. “It is a purposeful decision on her part to try to claim a segment of the conservative movement as her own.”
Though he said it has caused some conservatives to question whether CPAC is losing relevance as new conservative activists affiliate more with the tea party movement than with establishment conservative and Republican groups, Erickson predicted that CPAC is “going to draw a lot more people and a wider range of both conservative voices and conservative age groups” than the Tea Party convention.
In 2009, CPAC, which is held in Washington and includes a presidential straw poll, drew an estimated 9,000 attendees, while the National Tea Party Convention, set to begin Feb. 4 in Nashville, had 600 tickets, some of which are still available.
“She could have done both,” Erickson said, “but I think she should be doing CPAC because she would have a more expanded reach. The people surrounding the governor need to go some good discernment as to who are her friends and who want to ride her coattails to greater personal success.”
Palin’s representatives confirmed Friday that she is still planning to attend the Tea Party Convention, but they ignored questions about whether it part of a broader effort to position her within the conservative movement.
The Tea Party Convention is being organized by Tea Party Nation, a for-profit company that runs a social networking website for activists, but is not considered a leading group in the tea party movement. It’s paying for Palin’s fee (reported to be in the low six figures) and other overhead by selling tickets (at $560 a pop) and by offering sponsorships, in some cases for $50,000 each.
Tea Party Nation is hoping to turn a profit from its convention so that it can “funnel money back into conservative causes” through a 527 group it plans to set up to get involved in campaigns, according to Judson Phillips, the group’s president.
Though he wouldn’t comment on Palin’s CPAC snub, he previously told POLITICO that his group’s ability to land Palin to keynote the convention demonstrates “that the tea party movement is having an impact in politics and that she recognizes its impact and that she wants to be a part of it. It’s going to be a hugely important event for her and for us in the tea party movement.”
But some Tea Party activists and organizers have questioned whether Tea Party Nation can pull off a successful convention, and also whether its plans are consistent with the goals of the grassroots movement, which exploded onto the scene last year when conservatives mobilized in opposition to the ambitious big-spending initiatives backed by President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats.
Anthony Shreeve, an East Tennessee local tea party organizer who resigned from the convention’s steering committee after a disagreement over its finances, blasted the steep ticket price and expressed concerns that Palin might compromise herself by attending.
“She thinks she’s coming to endorse the tea party movement, but most tea party people won’t be there because they can’t afford it,” he said. “The tea party movement is a grass-roots movement; it’s not a business,” he added, asserting the convention “could potentially harm the movement, because it’s a premature national initiative that doesn’t have the support of the majority of we the people.”
And a tea party source familiar with the convention’s fundraising and planning efforts questioned whether it was wise to prominently feature Palin at an event purporting to be driven by grass-roots activists.
Plus, the source said the convention’s sponsorship requests exceeded the norm for such an event, adding, “I understand completely asking sponsors to chip in, but 50 grand is just way beyond.”
Though the convention lists nine sponsors on its website, some of the groups that have played leading roles in organizing the Tea Party movement are notably absent, including the Dick Armey-led FreedomWorks and Americans for Prosperity.
Asked why they didn’t sponsor the event, FreedomWorks representatives didn’t comment, while Americans for Prosperity president Tim Phillips issued a statement saying “while we're not an official sponsor, AFP supports efforts to continue strengthening the tea party movement as a grass-roots force. AFP will certainly have activists and staff there.”
The Tea Party Convention is being organized by Tea Party Nation, a for-profit company that runs a social networking website for activists, but is not considered a leading group in the tea party movement. It’s paying for Palin’s fee (reported to be in the low six figures) and other overhead by selling tickets (at $560 a pop) and by offering sponsorships, in some cases for $50,000 each.
Tea Party Nation is hoping to turn a profit from its convention so that it can “funnel money back into conservative causes” through a 527 group it plans to set up to get involved in campaigns, according to Judson Phillips, the group’s president.
Though he wouldn’t comment on Palin’s CPAC snub, he previously told POLITICO that his group’s ability to land Palin to keynote the convention demonstrates “that the tea party movement is having an impact in politics and that she recognizes its impact and that she wants to be a part of it. It’s going to be a hugely important event for her and for us in the tea party movement.”
But some Tea Party activists and organizers have questioned whether Tea Party Nation can pull off a successful convention, and also whether its plans are consistent with the goals of the grassroots movement, which exploded onto the scene last year when conservatives mobilized in opposition to the ambitious big-spending initiatives backed by President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats.
Anthony Shreeve, an East Tennessee local tea party organizer who resigned from the convention’s steering committee after a disagreement over its finances, blasted the steep ticket price and expressed concerns that Palin might compromise herself by attending.
“She thinks she’s coming to endorse the tea party movement, but most tea party people won’t be there because they can’t afford it,” he said. “The tea party movement is a grass-roots movement; it’s not a business,” he added, asserting the convention “could potentially harm the movement, because it’s a premature national initiative that doesn’t have the support of the majority of we the people.”
And a tea party source familiar with the convention’s fundraising and planning efforts questioned whether it was wise to prominently feature Palin at an event purporting to be driven by grass-roots activists.
Plus, the source said the convention’s sponsorship requests exceeded the norm for such an event, adding, “I understand completely asking sponsors to chip in, but 50 grand is just way beyond.”
Though the convention lists nine sponsors on its website, some of the groups that have played leading roles in organizing the Tea Party movement are notably absent, including the Dick Armey-led FreedomWorks and Americans for Prosperity.
Asked why they didn’t sponsor the event, FreedomWorks representatives didn’t comment, while Americans for Prosperity president Tim Phillips issued a statement saying “while we're not an official sponsor, AFP supports efforts to continue strengthening the tea party movement as a grass-roots force. AFP will certainly have activists and staff there.”
