Confusion Reigns in Sarah Palin's Tea Party -- Iowa appearance 'on hold', 'unconfirmed' -- Person close to Palin cites 'continual lying' by Tea Party

Sarah Palin was once known as the Tea Party Queen, but confusion has usurped her throne. Christine O'Donnel has been uninvited to appear at a Tea Party event with Sarah Palin, AGAIN! From ABC News:

The back and forth between Christine O’Donnell, Sarah Palin, and the tea party group putting on Saturday’s rally in Indianola, IA has resulted in O’Donnell being disinvited…again.

Originally, O’Donnell was invited to speak Monday by Tea Party of America. On Tuesday the invitation was rescinded. By Tuesday evening, though, it was back on. O’Donnell tweeted that she “humbly re-accepted the re-invitation” to speak, according to her Twitter account. Now it is back off.

Tea Party of America Founder Ken Crow said he called Christine O’Donnell’s Chief of Staff Mark Moran earlier today to break the news that the Delaware tea party darling was not going to be speaking. ...

... When asked if Gov. Palin’s people asked that O’Donnell be disinvited again before Palin re-confirmed her attendance, Crow answered, “That is private (information) between O’Donnell’s staff and the Tea Party of America.”

Earlier today, multiple media outlets reported that Palin’s event was on hold, but Crow told ABC News Wednesday morning that “we made mistakes and now we are fixing them.” It seems that the back and forth with O’Donnell is one of the things the Tea Party of America had to fix before the event could go on as scheduled. ...

Sarah Palin had been scheduled to appear for some time, but once it was announced that O'Donnell was scheduled to appear at the same event, everything went helter-skelter. Some fickle Tea Partiers, who had enthusiastically supported O'Donnell's bid for a U.S. Senate seat in Delaware last year, protested O'Donnell's invitation. Sarah Palin endorsed O'Donnell's bid for the senate seat.

Earlier, this morning, The Wall Street Journal reported that Palin had cancelled-out of the event, but in this, their later corrected story, it is said that her appearance is "on hold" or "no longer confirmed:"

Sarah Palin’s Saturday appearance at a tea party rally in Indianola, Iowa, is on hold, a person close to the former Alaska governor told The Wall Street Journal.

The person said Ms. Palin’s appearance was “no longer confirmed” and cited “continual lying” from event organizers at Tea Party of America, including a recent mixup over whether former U.S. Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell of Delaware would also speak.

Ms. Palin is known for last-minute schedule changes that whipsaw supporters and media across the country. But the latest decision is puzzling. Ms. Palin’s speech at the rally was viewed as her most high-profile appearance of the summer, fueling speculation she was indeed plotting to run for the Republican presidential nomination.

Attendees were reportedly traveling from across the U.S. to attend the rally in Iowa, which holds the nation’s first nominating contest next year.

The former governor will now appear at a Friday event in Des Moines sponsored by the group Conservatives4Palin. It is currently scheduled for 8 p.m. at The Machine Shed Restaurant, though the location will probably have to be changed, the person close to Ms. Palin said. Ms. Palin is still scheduled to appear at a Tea Party Express tour stop Monday in New Hampshire.

Ms. Palin may still hold an event Saturday, the person said, though she has no firm plans. It’s also possible she could still attend the Indianola tea party rally, the person said.

The former governor’s team decided to back out Tuesday night after rally organizers re-invited Ms. O’Donnell to speak on stage. Organizers had booked Ms. O’Donnell, who lost her 2010 bid for a U.S. Senate seat from Delaware, to speak but quickly withdrew the invitation in an effort to avoid controversy.

A Tea Party of America leader told Ms. Palin’s aides that the former governor told him to re-invite Ms. O’Donnell, which is not true, the person said, adding that there were also issues over fund-raising and logistical changes that were not approved by Ms. Palin’s team.

Whether Palin will appear may not be known until Saturday. Who could have known that a person close to Palin would say that Tea Partiers are continual liars?

Update: Real Clear Politics has a story saying that Palin will appear at the event, after all:

After a dizzying day that saw members of her inner circle threaten to pull Sarah Palin's participation in a rally Saturday in Indianola, Iowa, a source close to Palin confirmed to RCP that the former Alaska governor will in fact attend the Tea Party of America event, as scheduled.

"We had some long discussions with the organizers; we talked about our concerns and worked them out, and they stepped up their game today," the Palin source said. ...

Update: From "New Questions, and Old, Surround Palin’s Iowa Trip:" "As of early Wednesday afternoon, the appearance in Iowa appeared to be back on, though Ms. Palin’s advisers cautioned that she could still take a pass if the organizers continue to change the terms of her appearance." It's interesting that Palin is trying to blame the organizers for anything that has gone wrong and might yet go wrong. If Tea Party of America is as flaky as "Ms. Palin's advisers" imply, why did Palin ever agree to participate in their event? Was she desperate for an Iowa appearance? Was the speaking fee right? A poorly advised, indecisive candidate, and one who plans poorly, isn't what voters will be looking for during the 2012 presidential campaign.

Update: People are beginning to ask the question, "Palin 2012: Crafty or Chaotic?" which is an ABC News story about the situation. My money's on chaotic -- disorganized.

Update: Doyle McManus of The Los Angeles Times writes, in "Palin the procrastinator":

Sarah Palin is giving indecision a bad name.

Not only can't she decide whether to run for president, this week she even waffled over whether to keep a date to speak at a "tea party" rally in Iowa on Sunday, a Sarah-palooza her devotees have been organizing for weeks. ...

Sarah Palin: The Procrastinating President. It has a nice ring to it, but do we need an indecisive procrastinator? For what?