Good-bye Tea Party Express

One of the strengths of the Tea Party movement is its lack of formal leadership. It has its organizers and heroes but very small staff and no national board of directors. The wisdom in having no official spokesperson was driven home by Sal Russo, one of the founders of the Tea Party Express. Maybe we should now call it the Amnesty Band Wagon. In a post at Roll Call " Conservatives Need to Fix the Broken U.S. Immigration System" Russo pours out his heart and and every hackneyed, liberal, talking point leaving one to wonder if he has been sleeping with Chuck Schumer. Russo is Rubio without the charm. He repeats Rubio's Chamber of Commerce poll test rhetoric as if saying it just one more time will stampede the recalcitrant flock rushing to the Rio Grande with open arms and open pocketbooks demanding open borders. As if we are all a bunch of dolts Russo even repeats the "secure borders" bullshit which would achieved sometime in the distant future.
Russo's sole accomplishment is the undercutting of the very real credibility of the Tea Party Express. Mary Beth Martin of Tea Party Patriots released her own clarifying statement that did not align well with Russo's post.

“Millions of people have come to America legally and invested the time and effort to become naturalized citizens in pursuit of personal freedom and their American Dream. We admire them for their courage, determination and desire, all of which reflect the founding principles of the United States.
“The position of Tea Party Patriots is clear. We must first fully secure our borders. Immigration reform cannot happen without this necessary first step.
“We support legal immigration and the rule of law, according to the Constitution. There is already a legal path to citizenship for those wishing to come to the United States. Anyone who decides to get off that path and enter the United States illegally should not be given any sort of amnesty because doing so is neither fair nor equal treatment under the law.
“We must also demand the Obama administration enforce our current immigration laws. Those who are determined to have entered the country illegally and are on-track for deportation should be deported. Those who have been convicted of crimes and are serving sentences for their crimes should remain incarcerated until their sentences have been served.
“Conservatives are watching Congress like a hawk and will do everything to make sure immigration reform is done in a manner that respects the law and those who abide by it.”

Good-bye Tea Party Express. See you in my spam trap.