As members of the South Atlanta Tea Party Board of Directors (SATP), we want to say how grateful and proud each of us is to be able to work within this patriotic organization. It is our goal locally, as well as nationally, to promote forums, discussions, and events that bring candidates into focus for you, the American voter. We believe that an informed electorate will make informed choices.
So, it is always our goal to provide opportunities where candidates may present their ideas on how they would function if elected to a public office. We have never deliberately offered any forum where the prism is slanted to deliver a stilted, self-serving message.
Lately, it has come to our attention that some candidates, seeking the credibility associated with the “Tea Party” image, are attaching a Tea Party affiliation to their candidacy. This is a wrong-headed effort on their part to capitalize on the Tea Party name and cash in on the values it represents.
Clearly, it is our goal to set the record straight. The SATP (as a group) has not endorsed any candidate at the local, state or national level.
While each of us on the board may have personal voting preferences, or past affiliations with a candidate or party, our personal histories do not interfere with our dedication to providing opportunities for diverse thought and discourse during these challenging political times.
The very fact that each of us would become involved with a group like the SATP, would suggest that personal liberty expressed at the ballot box is a commonly held desire of long standing that we all share. It is a desire that we feel compelled to share on a larger scale; hence, our dedication to the goals of the SATP and the Tea Party concept in general.
Therefore, we want to state unequivocally to all the voters and candidates that if in the future the SATP does choose to endorse a particular candidate or candidates, it will be announced by the SATP board of directors and well publicized.
Any candidate who states that he/she is a “Tea Party candidate” is now on notice that this is done at his or her own peril and without the endorsement of the SATP.
Just because a candidate may try to make this claim, does not mean it is the truth. Only our official endorsement makes such a claim a true statement.
Marguerite Kelly
Secretary of the South Atlanta Tea Party
for the board of directors
