This morning’s panel on the rising influence of the Tea Party and its social media presence rocked an audience of empty chairs in an instance of biting irony. Rusty Humphries, a nationally syndicated radio host, steered the discussion- whose participants cleverly included two women and a black guy. Each panel member confidently affirmed the Tea Party’s viability, citing everything from Rand Paul’s filibuster to Rand Paul’s filibuster, and laid out their collective vision for its future.

“Our group should not be straying from principle to work with RINO’s,” claimed panel member Ryan Hecker, CEO of the grassroots superpac Freedom Works. Others echoed his stance, slamming the Republicans for lacking self-awareness when it comes to the general public. And they would know all about that, since the Tea Party has such a grounded view of its own relevance.

After expressing great faith in the Tea Party’s social media and grassroots infrastructure, the members wrapped up their event by reminding all the faithful Tea Partiers out there to ignore the mainstream media, buck the establishment, and pray that the country will wake up one day and realize the far right was right all along. A winning strategy that has carried the Tea Party to the illustrious position it holds today.

Other panel members included Amy Kramer of the Tea Party Express; journalist Jennifer Stefano; Niger Innis, the chief strategist of teaparty.net and national spokesman for the Congress on Racial Equality and author Dustin Stockton.