Michelle King is a member of Strategic Planning Committee of the local Tea Party Coalition. Although she was unable to attend the national rally in Nashville last weekend she has followed events closely.

“Apparently there was a lot of backlash and they lost some speakers at the last minute because of an ethics problem,” she said. “It turned out to be a ‘for profit’ group and people were upset that the tickets were being sold for $500 a piece and that the speakers were charging a lot of money.

“Most of these tea party coalitions are very loose coalitions, different groups working together where they have things in common. There is not one leader of everything. And that’s a good thing in that, if one fails somebody else can find a better idea. It kind of brings a free market concept into the movement.”

Where does King see the Tea Party movement going from here?

“The next step is for people to start working together and really focusing on getting people into office who will represent them and represent the constitution. Everyone involved needs to focus on their local areas and their local elected officials, making sure they’re holding those officials accountable.

Sarah Palin is not an official leader of the movement but her appearance Saturday before 1,100 activists seemed to capture the spirit of conservative grassroots.

“Those I spoke to who listened to her, were impressed with her,” said. King. They really liked it and were excited about it. Probably those who weren’t fans of Sarah Palin weren’t watching.”

Is Palin a viable Republican candidate for President?

“Whether or not it’s true, she’s been painted by the media as a laughingstock and a joke. I’m not sure she’s really very viable. I don’t know if she has enough depth to do a presidential campaign. She’s not one I’ve been impressed strongly enough to follow. At this point I’m hoping that other people will step up and run.”

King said the Tea Party Coalition becoming involved with a reformation of the Republican Party would be much more effective than starting a new party.

“There’s nothing wrong with the Republican platform,” she said. “What we need to do is hold our officials responsible to the platform they’re running under and hold them responsible to the laws. The problem isn’t the party itself, it’s the people who run the party.”

King said the local Tea Party Coalition is supporting the Young Republicans in their question-answer session Feb. 23 with Senate candidate Mike Lee at the Beehive Grill. “They’re not an official part of the coalition but we’re supporting that event because Mike Lee is a conservative candidate.”