Tea Party Patriots' National Convention This Weekend in Phoenix

The Tea Party Patriots who helped shape midterm elections last year will converge on Phoenix this weekend for the group’s national convention. The three-day confab will draw Republican presidential hopefuls Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty; U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas; and Herman Cain, the former chief executive of Godfather’s Pizza, according to the Arizona Republic.

During the convention, expected to attract from 1,500 to 2,000 tea partyers, the activists will discuss long-range plans to keep and increase their conservative influence on the country’s direction.

"We have a 40-year plan to instill in the hearts and minds of our fellow Americans the core values of fiscal responsibility, constitutionally limited government and free markets," said Jenny Beth Martin, a national coordinator for the Tea Party Patriots, told the newspaper. "This weekend, we are going to be further developing the plan to achieve that goal."