Members of the Tea Party are storming the Staten Island office of Rep. Michael Grimm, R-N.Y., on Monday to protest Grimm’s endorsement of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
“Mitt Romney has a history of being on the wrong side of key Tea Party issues, including his support for the TARP Bank Bailouts and universal healthcare,” read a statement released Monday by NYC Liberty, the Tea Party group that is organizing the protest.
Grimm is one of dozens of lawmakers that the Tea Party sent to congress in the 2010 elections. NYC Liberty leaders said its members are “furious.”
“When there are several authentic Tea Party candidates in the presidential race, including Michele Bachmann, Ron Paul, Herman Cain and Rick Perry, many Tea Partiers are asking, ‘Has Congressman Grimm sold us out for the GOP establishment? Has he already been co-opted by Washington?'” the statement continued.
The protest highlights Romney’s thorny relationship with the Tea Party, a right-wing movement within the Republican party that threatens to derail his primary campaign.
Grimm cited Romney’s pricate sector experience on Monday as his primary reason for endorsing the presidential candidate.
