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Geoff Rapp, Westlake organizer of the 912 Project, holds up two flags with the phrases "Don't Tread On Me" and "America, Love It Or Leave It" during the April 15, 2010 Tea Party rally in Cleveland.

(John Kuntz, The Plain Dealer)

Washington, D.C. - The Federal Election Commission on Thursday denied the request of a prominent Tea Party organization that argued it should not have to disclose its political donors because they might face harassment from the government or the public.

, which recently announced that it is seeking challengers for the 87 Republicans who voted to end last month's government shutdown,

that an exemption from public disclosure would be justified by part of the Supreme Court's decision in

.

The group's lawyers noted the decision lets organizations like the Socialist Workers Party have an exemption from disclosing their contributors if they can establish a "reasonable probability that the compelled disclosure would result in threats, harassment, or reprisals from either Government officials or private parties."

"As grassroots outsiders, TEA Party supporters are accustomed to defending their values from both government officials and private opprobrium," the group said in a September filing with the FEC. "But the TEA Party is now encountering unprecedented harassment from both government officials and private actors."

The Tea Party group filed more than 1,000 pages of documents it said showed harassment, including reports on the IRS questioning whether Tea Party and other political groups should have tax exempt status, and criticism of its stances by the media and politicians including President Barack Obama, Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Niles Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan.

In making its case, it cited an

that described Tea Party populism as "driven by anger at our government and at our country," and an instance where Ryan referred to its activists as "tea bagger protestors."

Organizations like Democracy 21 and the Campaign Legal Center opposed the group's request, arguing that the disclosure exemption is only available when the “threat to the exercise of First Amendment rights is so serious and the state interest furthered by disclosure so insubstantial that [the disclosure requirement] cannot be constitutionally applied.”

Paul S. Ryan of the Campaign Legal Center said that if the FEC had granted the Tea Party an exemption originally given to the imperiled membership of the NAACP in the Jim Crow South, "it is difficult to imagine what political groups would not qualify for the exemption – including the Republican and Democratic National Committees.”

A few private citizens wrote in as well, including

, a mortgage consultant in Beavercreek, Ohio, who contended the Tea Party organization was trying to "see how far they can push the rules," and said if they could "hide their donors then anyone in the world can and will influence and buy our elections."

While two Federal Election Commission members sided with the Tea Party Leadership Fund and said its evidence of harassment was stronger than documentation provided by he Socialist Workers Party, other commission members said the situation was not the same. The FEC denied the group's request in a 3 to 2 vote.

FEC Chair Ellen L. Weintraub pointed out the Socialist organization never supported a winning candidate and had only 11 donors that gave more than the $200 disclosure requirement, so just a few names were hidden from the public.

She said the Tea Party's greater political success and its larger donor base were "an important political distinction."

"Certainly, no-one at this table wishes to condone any form of harassment for anyone who is trying to express their political views in any way," said Weintraub, noting that when allegations were raised about the IRS targeting political groups for scrutiny "there was bipartisan outrage."

The Tea Party Leadership Fund's disclosure forms show it raised more than $1 million in each of the last two election cycles, collecting several thousand dollars from Ohio residents.

The 87 members of Congress it has dubbed "Republican traitors" and promised to challenge in next year's GOP primaries include House Speaker John Boehner of West Chester, Rep. Pat Tiberi of the Columbus area and Rep. Dave Joyce of Russell Township.