Final answer:
Loyalists likely supported the Tea Act of 1773 as it aligned with their tendency to back British policies, viewing it as an acceptable economic measure to help the British East India Company and beneficial for the colonies due to lower tea prices. They may have regarded it as an appropriate use of parliamentary power, in contrast to the Patriots who saw it as an infringement on their rights and liberties.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Loyalist perspective on the Tea Act of 1773 was likely support for the measure, as Loyalists generally backed the British government and its policies. They may have seen the Tea Act as a legitimate exercise of parliamentary authority and a necessary move to support the financially troubled British East India Company. Loyalists might have viewed the act as beneficial to the colonies because it allowed colonists to purchase tea at a lower price due to the elimination of duties in England and the direct sale of tea from the company to the colonists. While American Patriots saw the Tea Act as another example of taxation without representation and an insidious means of establishing precedent for parliamentary taxes, loyalists possibly considered it a smart economic policy and a demonstration of the benefits of remaining part of the British Empire.
The Tea Act did not aim to raise revenues or assert parliamentary power but rather provided economic protectionism for the East India Company by allowing it to sell tea directly to customers in the colonies at a cheaper rate. The act preserved the tea tax from the Townshend Acts, which continued to incite strong colonial opposition due to the principle of 'no taxation without representation.'
Loyalists might have been more sympathetic to the view that Parliament and King George III had the right to regulate colonial trade and protect British economic interests, including the East India Company. The Loyalist perspective was in stark contrast to the Patriots, who recognized the Tea Act as a threat to their liberties and an effort to coerce them into accepting British taxes and regulation.