Sentinel got this one right! Well, almost.

The Orlando Sentinel has accurately evaluated the Florida Tea Party Fake Tea Party as an inconsequential minor third party with no chance of winning elections this year, and has declined to include Fake Tea Party candidates in their editorial board interviews.

Why not the Tea Party? – Orlando Opinionators – Orlando Sentinel

The Tea Party is much newer to the scene [than the Libertarian or Green Parties], and it has yet to win a federal office. The party’s real clout – so far – is the influence it is wielding over the selection of candidates from the Republican Party throughout the country.  In other cases, like the District 12 race, Tea Party candidate Wilkinson could end up siphoning off enough Republican votes to produce a Democrat winner.

Well, the Sentinel got it right that the Fake Tea Party doesn't deserve to be included in the Sentinel's interviews.  However, they failed to make the extremely important distinction between the Fake Tea Party third party and the tea party movement.  The tea party movement has repeatedly denounced the Fake Tea Party or any other similar third party efforts that would split the conservative vote (check out our posts here and here and here).

For anyone out there who is doubting there could be a connection between Alan Grayson and the Fake Tea Party, ask yourself this - when have you ever heard of anyone running against an incumbent for any office, where the challenger never criticized the incumbent at all, and in fact scarcely ever even mentioned him?  Peg Dunmire, the Fake Tea Party candidate who is running against Alan Grayson magically stopped talking about him as soon as she left the Republican Party to join the Fake Tea Party.  Even Dunmire's website never  criticizes him directly, or ever mentions him by name except on one separate sub-page accessed via the fifth option on a pull-down menu titled "issues." 

If Dunmire were really, truly a conservative who sincerely desired to bring a challenge to Alan Grayson, she would break free from Doug Guetzloe, Fred O'Neal, and the rest of her handlers and not be afraid to go after Grayson.