The Tea Party, by and large, was "adopted" early on by right-wing libertarian activist groups and by wealthy right wing donors, who advised and supported its efforts to take back "their" government. Instead, of course, it has simply been used to help right-ring activists and the wealthy take our government away from us. By right-wing, I mean reactionary corporate interests, political "Christian-ish interest groups," and (always) the very wealthy.
Unfortunately the Tea Party movement is an indication that our schools have failed for many decades, not just recently. Failed in the teaching of history, economics (most texts are corporate), and government. The primary example is the name: the original "party" was a protest against a corporation and its influence in government. Today's "partiers" attack government itself as the evil "problem." They seem not to know much about politics and government, history and economics. They seem to have lost touch with even the recent past; many don't know the source of the current Second Republican Designed - yes, planned - Deficit and the corporate/lobbyist causes of our federal government's dysfunctions and corruption. According to several accounts, many Tea Partiers were originally frustrated with and activated by what they saw as local and state injustices. But the extremist views of society and government voiced by so many today - especially some congressional representatives - and the Party's mean-spirited instinct to punish not only other Americans but also the government itself, are frightening in their lack of knowledge and their ignoring of all possible consequences to our injured but valuable society.