The tea parties may have one less controversy to handle.

Mark Williams has told Tea Party Express, the group he helped start, that he would like to sever ties completely. Williams' satirical remarks on race got the group kicked out of a national coalition earlier this month.

In his resignation letter, the radio personality blamed the media for dwelling on the controversy that came out of an NAACP resolution accusing the tea parties of racism.

He added that the issue could damage the larger tea-party brand.

CityBeat offers an excerpt of what Williams wrote:

"I feel compelled to separate myself from any further involvement with the Tea Party Express so that I can pursue other interests and to free the tea party movement from any more distraction based on my personal comments or blogs," Williams wrote.

"The media coverage over a recent satirical posting on my personal MarkTalk.com blog risks injuring the Tea Party Express, the tea party movement as a whole, and the people in this movement who I respect and admire so much," Williams added. "It has become increasingly unacceptable that the media and our domestic enemies continue to anoint me as the official voice of a massively diverse and broad-based movement."

Tea Party Express issued a press release making things official on Thursday. The group has played a prominent role in the national movement by organizing cross-country bus tours that feature well-known figures like former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

Williams, a California-based radio host, began the group last year.

-- Ambreen Ali, Congress.org