Poison Tea

The secret origins of the Tea Party http://time.com/secret-origins-of-the-tea-party/?xid=time_socialflow_twitter via @TIME

"Poison Tea shines a spotlight on the shadowy Koch brother network and reveals hidden connections between the tobacco industry, the reclusive billionaire brothers, and the Tea Party movement. It’s a major story that for too long has been under-reported and poorly understood." ―Rep. Henry Waxman, former chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee

“In Poison Tea, Jeff Nesbit draws on his own first-hand insider knowledge plus extensive research to reveal that, contrary to conservative mythology, the genesis of the Tea Party was neither spontaneous nor did it come from the grassroots. Poison Tea demonstrates that the birth of the Tea Party was the result of an unholy alliance between the Koch brothers and the tobacco industry that began in the 1980s. Nesbit also reveals how this decades-long campaign to capture the American political system helped spark the civil war within today’s Republican Party.” ―Andrew Claster, Deputy Chief Analytics Officer, Obama for America 2011-2012

I wonder who has had more "poison tea", Donald Trump or Ted Cruz? I saw Donald Trump with Sarah Palin on television. She is now supporting the real estate tycoon. I don't know if she is still popular with Tea Party supporters. Ted Cruz tweeted, "Without her[Sarah Palin's] support, I wouldn't be in the Senate. Regardless of what she does in 2016, I will always be a big fan."

"Seventeen percent of Americans now consider themselves Tea Party supporters, and a record 54% say they are neither supporters nor opponents."
"Several Republicans elected to the House and Senate with Tea Party support have become major players on the national stage, including presidential candidates Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz. The Tea Party movement has also been tied to the Freedom Caucus, a group of conservative Republican members of the House who have played a key role in the current battle to select a new speaker."
In U.S., Support for Tea Party Drops to New Low