Republican leaders are rejecting Democratic claims that protests at GOP town halls are similar to the 2009-2010 Tea Party uprising, claiming that they are simply the outbursts of liberals “sad they lost the election.”

Noting that the Tea Party was an organic protest that also blasted Republicans for spending too much and busting the federal budget, several GOP House members said that the new protests many are facing back home are instead organized by Democratic social media groups and focused only on blasting the right.