In an interview with BreitbartTV, Tea Party Patriot Leader Jenny Beth Martin said she believes Newt Gingrich’s South Carolina primary victory was a victory for the Tea Party.
Ms. Martin said that although Mr. Gingrich “is not the perfect candidate,” she believes many Tea Party members have decided to coalesce support around the former Speaker.
I think they were definitely sending a message against Mitt Romney. And I think they were saying, ‘Look, we’ve got to have somebody who can debate the president and this is who we think can do it.’ Newt is not perfect. But he’s a warrior. Look, his whole staff left him practically and he just won South Carolina.
Ms. Martin was careful to say that the Tea Party Patriot leadership has voted not to endorse any particular candidate during the primary. She did, however, state that the Tea Party is a powerful force in Florida and will play a role in the outcome of next week’s primary in that state, particularly for Mr. Gingrich who has less financial resources than Mr. Romney and will therefore need to rely on grassroots support.