Tea Partiers want Palin to attend Sep 12 event

There's going to be a big Tea Party event on September 12 in Washington DC and the event organizers have invited Palin to attend the event.

I don't know if it would be a good idea for her to do that, but I am very happy that the tea partiers have been chanting her name and wearing t-shirts and signs with her name on it. I'm so happy that she's been part of the movement without officially doing anything in it. It shows that they identify with her, that she represents what they believe in.

Why I'm hesitant for her to attend the event is because of the "leader" issue, which I'll write about more in a different post. The angle of the following CNN story is that the Tea Party movement needs a leader. I don't necessarily believe they/we do. I support the Tea Parties and I attended one on April 15. And I really like the fact that we're a very large group of citizens who are expressing opinions in this way.

To me, Palin represents much more than just the Tea Parties and I hope that if she does attend she will not be labeled as the "leader" of it. I wouldn't want that to pigeon-hole her into that. I will explain more in a later post.

Looking for a leader, Tea Partiers issue invite to Palin
Posted: September 2nd, 2009 10:53 PM ET

EL PASO, Texas (CNN) — As the Tea Party Express makes its way across the country, Sarah Palin has emerged as a favorite daughter of the movement, and organizers have invited her to join the tour — or at least come to the final stop in the nation's capital.

The bus is scheduled to end its nationwide journey in Washington on Saturday, September 12.

"We've been in touch with her people, letting her know the response that we've gotten. She's very suportive of the movement," says Joe Wierzbicki, one of the organizers traveling on the Tea Party Express.

So far, no politician has emerged as a leader of the Tea Party movement – and the question of just who might eventually take up the mantle is a hot topic on the bus. Nobody may be better positioned than Palin — but organizers, some of the most motivated members of the conservative base, still say she'll need to earn that title.

"Right now there's a handful of people who strike a chord with the tea party base, and she is certainly one of those people," says Wierzbicki. "Whether or not she emerges as one of those leaders, that's between her and the American people."

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