Tea Party Movement

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9/12 Tea Party March on Washington.

The TEA Party Movement (TEA is an acronym for Taxed Enough Already) is an ongoing, nationwide effort by grassroots protesters, encompassing millions of individuals and thousands of self-organizing groups, all united in accomplishing a single goal: returning fiscal responsibility and limited government to the United States through the exercise of political activism.[1] The main focus of the TEA Party Movement is a rebuke of outrageous mandates, overreaching and out of control spending by an out of touch federal government. [2]

The most stunning victory credited to the Tea Party Movement, and specifically to the Tea Party Express, was the surprise nomination of Sharron Angle over the establishment favorite Sue Lowden as the Republican candidate for the Senate seat of Nevada. The Tea Party Movement is also credited with helping to elect Scott Brown in an upset for the seat formerly held by the late Ted Kennedy.

Dick Armey of FreedomWorks was a prime initial mover for this cause. Glenn Beck, Rand Paul, Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, and many others have encouraged and participated in aspects of the movement.

All of the rallies are in protest of the generational theft of public tax monies, the tremendous extensions of United States Federal debt and authority, the apparent restructuring of the Federal government with the intent to contravene the system of checks and balances for which the Constitution provides, and the attempt, which some movement leaders say has been in progress for several decades, to sacrifice liberty for permanent dependency.[3][4][5]

The Tea Party Movement held its first scheduled nationwide protest on April 15, 2009, a day that became known as the Tax Day Tea Party.[6] In the spirit of the founding fathers Boston Tea Party, the rallies have used themes from the American Revolution and also adopted the "American Tea Party Anthem," a song first performed during a March 21, 2009 Orlando, Florida Tea Party that drew over 4,000 people.[7][8][9]

Beginnings

On January 27, radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh criticized the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, commenting, "This 'porkulus' bill is designed to repair the Democratic Party's power losses from the 1990s forward, and to cement the party's majority power for decades."[10]

On February 10, a Cape Coral woman named Mary Rakovich led a small protest outside President Barack Obama's townhall meeting in Fort Myers, Florida.[11] Then in late March of 2009, faced with the prospect of heavy fines from the city for not having the proper permitting or insurance, Mary Rakovich moved forward with future protests but with the backing of national organization FreedomWorks. Rakovich said FreedomWorks offered to provide the insurance per the city's rules.[12]

The first anti-spending protest, organized by Liberty Belle, occurred in Seattle, Washington on February 16, 2009.[13][14] Another protest was held the following day, held in Denver on February 17,[15] and a protest in Mesa, Arizona on February 18 brought 500 protesters.[16]

Shout Heard 'Round the World

The Tea Party Movement gained support when on February 19, on live TV, CNBC reporter Rick Santelli argued about the bailouts and shouted, "The government is promoting bad behavior."[17][18] Standing in the middle of the Chicago Stock Exchange, Santelli declared that America needed "a new kind of tea party," so that citizens can express their discontent with "the government's support of fiscal irresponsibility."[19][20][21] With the help of DontGo, Top Conservatives on Twitter (TCOT), Smart Girl Politics (SGP), The American Spectator, Americans for Tax Reform, FreedomWorks, and The Heartland Institute, the Chicago Tea Parties were scheduled to happen nationwide on February 27, 2009.[22]

February 27th Tea Parties

Americans across the country gathered in 50 cities to protest the newly-passed Stimulus Bill of 2009.[23] Over 30,000 people made it to this event.[24] Many at the event were upset over the economic stimulus packages and bailouts for Wall Street pushed through by both President Bush and President Obama's administrations.[25][21]

Location Sponsors[26] Details
Atlanta, Georgia TCOT, SGP, Don'tGo A reported 300 to 400 protesters gathered outside the Georgia Capitol in protest of a $787 billion recovery bill.[27][28]
Chicago, Illinois Don'tGo[29] Approximately 300 people braved the 25 degree cold and wind in Chicago.[30][31][21]
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas Americans for Prosperity,[32] TCOT, SGP, Don'tGo, Dallas County Young Republicans A "Texas-sized Tea Party" of 300 or more Texans met in Fort Worth, protesting big government and taxes.[33] One sponsor, TCOT, collected over 800 signatures during the event.[34]
Denver, Colorado TCOT, SGP, Don'tGo At the East Capitol Steps, 100 "Atlas Shrugged" fans braved cold temperatures for a "Nationwide Chicago Tea Party" to protest the Obama Administration's bailout plan.[35][36]
Houston, Texas TBD Large groups, not entirely made up of Republicans, tried to create a modern day version of the Boston Tea Party.[37][38]
Washington, D.C. Americans for Prosperity, Americans for Tax Reform, Young Conservatives Coalition, The Heartland Institute The American Tea Party made some noise outside the White House.[39][40] Several hundred taxpayers showed up at the DC Tea Party protest in Lafayette Park,[41][42] including "Joe the Plumber."[43]

Scheduled Rallies

Tax Day Tea Party poster

Tax Day Tea Party

Main Article: Tax Day Tea Party

2009

Success from the Chicago Tea Parties on February 27, as part of a concerted nationwide effort, led to the Tax Day Tea Party rallies held on April 15, 2009. Following the Chicago Tea Party protests, a group called Americans for Prosperity of North Carolina began implementing plans for a "Tax Day" Tea Party rally in Raleigh on the tax filing deadline.[44] Leading up to the Tax Day Tea Parties, the events were organized and promoted by volunteers, activists, and Political action committees across the United States.[45] By taking advantage of online viral marketing to get the word out,[46] the speed and scope with which the Tax Day Tea Party protests were organized can be attributed to the use of Twitter #TCOT feeds,[47] on blogs,[48] and the social networking Web site Facebook.[49]

President Obama is seen to have responded to the tea parties with requested budget cuts of $100 million on April 20, 2009.[50] Rush Limbaugh contended, "I'm sure they've got internal polling data that shows these tea parties are successful and these tea parties are a problem. So they're responding to the tea parties here. That's all this is." According to a Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey on April 20, 2009, the poll found that fifty-one percent (51%) of Americans had a favorable view of the tea parties held nationwide, including 32% who said their view of the events were "Very favorable." Thirty-three percent (33%) held an unfavorable opinion of the tea parties. Fifteen percent (15%) were not sure.[51]

2010

The Tea Party Patriots[52] announced a milestone in the Tea Party movement: 2 million people attended the April 15 Tea Party events across the country in 2010, and 2,000 groups are now voluntarily affiliated with the Tea Party Patriots through its Web site.[53] Recent polls have shown that 48% of voters believe their views are reflected more closely in the values of the Tea Party movement than in the views of President Obama.

Independence Day

Main Article: Independence Day Tea Party

The same organizations decided to repeat their performance on Independence Day (July 4, 2009). Even more people attended; the largest such rally was held on the grounds of the Southfork Ranch (scene of the television series Dallas '), in Plano, Texas, which drew 37,000 attendees. The themes that organizers and participants sounded at these events were much the same as were those at the Tax Day events: advocacy of limited government, decrying of high levels of taxation, and refusal to countenance plans for socialism and especially socialized medicine.

Labor Day

Several organizations also organized Tea Parties on Labor Day, once again sounding the same limited-government, low-tax, and anti-socialistic themes. Those organizations that did not plan such events often referred people to those that did.

September 12 March on Washington

Main Article: September 12 March on Washington
Gadsden snake.jpg
The largest TEA Party event thus far has been the September 12 March on Washington, DC. This was an event organized initially by the FreedomWorks Foundation, but nearly all Tea Party organizations decided to participate in this event, primarily by chartering buses and registering people for transportation to Washington. FreedomWorks estimates that 600,000 to 800,000 persons attended, and they base that estimate on the number of persons who responded when their Master of Ceremonies asked all attendees within earshot to send the text message "Freedom" to a designated five-digit telephone number. However, the London Daily Mail estimates attendance at as many as a million persons, on the basis of eyewitness accounts and aerial-photographic evidence.[54] Estimates of total attendance are difficult to obtain, primarily because the size of the crowd far exceeded the estimates by the event planners, with the result that many attendees were never able to get within earshot of the stage or even the sound system, and the temporary sanitary facilities were hopelessly jammed, with fifty persons standing in line to use each portable "necessary."

Operation: Can You Hear us Now?

TEA party demonstrations have targeted local and national media outs across the country to oppose massive government spending. In a press release, the movement was led by FaxDC in about 100 cities across the U.S. on September 17th. [55] Rush Limbaugh has previously spoke for the need for such media targeted TEA protests.

  • NBC studios in Burbank
  • CNN in Atlanta and
  • Affiliate stations of NBC, ABC and CBS
  • The New York Times
  • Los Angeles Times
  • Other prominent newspapers.

Canyouhearusnow.jpg

TEA Party Movie

TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film was released Thanksgiving Day 2009, is a documentary of five grassroots activists. The story line "from home town rally goers and rally organizers to national activists taking part in the 912 Taxpayer March on Washington." The theme is about principles, a call for a return to constitutionally limited government, personal responsibility, and fiscal restraint at the Federal level. TEA Party the Movie

Pink Slips Campaign

Organized in part by Joseph Farah from WorldNetDaily, they had a goal of sending each and every member of Congress more than 5,000,000 pink slips.
Each pink slip reads YOU ARE BEING PUT ON NOTICE and

  • government health care
  • cap and trade
  • "hate crimes"
  • any more spending

"If you vote for any of these, your real pink slip will be issued in the next election"

As of November 2009, 8 million pink slips have been sent to Congress at a cost of $29 each [56]

Themes

The Tea Party Movement began with a protest against two aspects of current public policy:

  1. Excessive taxation
  2. Special privilege

Rick Santelli specifically cited the mortgage bailout policies of early 2009 as a prize example of the government doing special favors for certain classes of voters, in return for their continued support, and also of the "moral hazard" in which such policies inevitably place anyone who "buys on time," i.e., buys any sort of asset, from a home appliance to a parcel of real estate, using borrowed money.

As the movement has progressed, it has begun to sound broader themes, which one may best summarize as:

  1. Self-responsibility
  2. Self-autonomy
  3. Limited government
  4. A requirement that government live within its own means, just as individuals must live within theirs
  5. Capitalism
  6. Freedom of all varieties of production and trade
  7. Respect for the United States Constitution

Characteristics

Autonomy of local organizers

Most organization of Tea Parties and similar events is local. Typical of the movement is the Morristown Tea Party Organization (Morristown, New Jersey), which has a five-member board of trustees and about fifty dedicated volunteers who handle operations, communication, and logistics without assistance or direction from any regional or other organization. State-wide co-ordinating bodies do exist (for example, New Jersey Tea Parties United), but local organizations are responsible for most of their activities, fund-raising, and legal functioning. In this regard, the Tea Party Movement is similar to the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America, which never seeks to dictate to individual churches how they must conduct their affairs.

Individual comportment and deportment

Event participants, and especially event planners, are urged to comport themselves in a manner respectful of the rights and feelings of others. Organizational leaders consciously endeavor to distinguish their movement from many liberal protest movements, which often characterize themselves by rude behavior, vandalism, and even physical assaults against their opponents. Any person who persistently suggests that Tea Party Movement participants engage in activities remotely similar to this may usually consider themselves excluded, and in some cases organizers have summoned law-enforcement authorities to deal with provocative behavior by attendees at planning and other meetings.

Symbols

Gadsden flag.png
By far the most prominent symbol at Tea Parties is the Gadsden Rattlesnake Flag.[57] The Come And Take It Flag has also appeared most notably at the September 12 March on Washington. Tea Party participants have almost always used home-made and home-decorated signs and other artifacts, in sharp contrast to the uniform, professionally printed signs carried at liberal demonstrations.

Most of the signs bear lampoons of the most highly publicized Obama Administration policies, from "Czars" to socialized medicine; moreover, Barack Obama is not the only target of criticism, the MSM has also been challenged in some rallies, both for their failings in covering the Tea Party Movement and also for what most participants regard as a collective decision by Mainstream Media organs to function as de facto government and/or Democratic Party as organs rather than the objective and disinterested commentators that they pretend to be.

Some of the signs that have been seen and photographed at these events have provoked cries of outrage from Tea Party Movement opponents, alleging bad taste, e.g. a picture of Barack Obama with the square mustache affected by Adolf Hitler and bearing the caption "I've Changed," and a sign bearing the message "Bury ObamaCare with Kennedy." After the liberal Mainstream Media quickly blamed conservatives and even Rush Limbaugh, some research was done to find the true source of the Hitler poster. It was later uncovered that the provocative Hitler signs were from a group of far-left Lyndon LaRouche supporters, as they were infiltrating the Tea Party rallies as a means to spread their extreme visions.[58]

News coverage

Attitude of Tea Party Movement participants toward four MSM outlets

By far the most industrious news organ that has covered the Tea Party Movement has been Fox News Channel, and especially its commentators Neil Cavuto and Glenn Beck.

Coverage by the Mainstream Media of the Tea Party events has been lacking, both in quantity and in quality. The three traditional broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) have attempted to discredit these events as corporate-sponsored or sponsored by the Republican Party and other conservative or reactionary groups, and have generally censored the movement by refusing to cover major events.[59] Furthermore, several news anchors working for CNN and MSNBC coined the phrase "tea-baggers," a crude term used to slur conservatives, which has an off-color connotation attempting to mock Tea Party Movement leaders and participants.[60]

Tea Party organizers are not controlled or funded by the Republican Party or any established interest group.

Polls

In latge 2009 the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll showed 41% of Americans have a positive view of the tea party movement, and 24% had a negative view . By contrast, only 35% of Americans have a positive view of the Democrats and only 28% have a positive view of the Republican Party.[61]


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References

  1. ↑ Morning Bell: The Tea Party Movement, heritage.org, April 15th, 2009.
  2. ↑ What the Tea Parties Are About, April 16, 2009.
  3. ↑ American Solutions for Winning the Future (PDF), American Solutions, April 15, 2009.
  4. ↑ Bret Baier. Taxpayers Strike Back With 'Tea Parties', Fox News, March 16, 2009.
  5. ↑ Tax Day Tea Party Resources , April 15, 2009.
  6. ↑ Tax Day Becomes Protest Day, Wall Street Journal, April 15, 2009.
  7. ↑ Michelle Malkin. Tea Party U.S.A.: The movement grows, February 21, 2009.
  8. ↑ "Tea Party" Song Becomes YouTube Hit. Newsblaze, March 23, 2009.
  9. ↑ Andrea Shea King. American Tea Party Anthem Singer Lloyd Marcus: "This whole thing is Rush Limbaugh’s fault.", Big Hollywood, April 14, 2009.
  10. ↑ Rush Limbaugh. Rush Limbaugh: My Bipartisan Stimulus, WSJ.com, January 29, 2009.
  11. ↑ Those outside Harborside in Fort Myers had plenty to see, say, The News-Press, February 11, 2009.
  12. ↑ Tea party finds new life, broadens cause, cape-coral-daily-breeze.com, March, 31, 2009.
  13. ↑ Derek Erwin. A 'Dozen' Ring Liberty Belle's Sound, 800 Cities Ring-Back, A 1-In-100 Blogger, accessed April 18, 2009.
  14. ↑ Michelle Malkin, Glenn Reynolds. Tea Party Protests: Mesa, Seattle, Denver, PJTV, February 16, 2009.
  15. ↑ President Signs Massive Stimulus In Denver, accessed April 2, 2009.
  16. ↑ Gary Grado, Sonu Munshi, Hayley Ringle. More than 500 protest Obama's arrival, accessed April 2, 2009.
  17. ↑ Transcript of Rick Santelli's speech, February 19, 2009.
  18. ↑ Rick Santelli's Shout Heard 'Round the World, CNBC.com, February 19, 2009.
  19. ↑ Jennifer Rubin. Mr. President: Turn Back While There’s Still Time, Pajamas Media, February 20, 2009.
  20. ↑ Matt Drudge. Rick Santelli - The Rant Heard 'Round the World', streetinsider.com, February 19, 2009.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Andy Roesgen. Protestors Gather for Self-Styled Tea Party, myfoxchicago.com, February 27, 2009.
  22. ↑ The Chicago Tea Party is on!, February 23, 2009.
  23. ↑ Talking Points and Theme for the Nationwide Chicago Tea Party, The TCOT Report, February 24, 2009.
  24. ↑ Teri Christoph. SGP.TeaParty, Smart Girl Politics, February 27, 2009.
  25. ↑ Raleigh Holds 'Tea Party' To Protest Government, Raleigh Telegram, March 25, 2009.
  26. ↑ Schedule of American Tea party Protests (with Sponsors), February 27, 2009.
  27. ↑ Budget debate launches new tea party, February 27, 2009.
  28. ↑ Tea Party from Atlanta, pajamasmedia.com, February 17, 2009.
  29. ↑ Don'tGo Movement: Pledge to Have a Representation at Chicago Tea Party, February 19, 2009.
  30. ↑ BREAKING - Chicago Tea Party (Pictures) UPDATED Now With Video!, February 27, 2009.
  31. ↑ The Birth of a New Revolution, February 27, 2009.
  32. ↑ The Tea Parties were successful - here's the proof, February 23, 2009.
  33. ↑ Tea Party '09 made the world news, February 27, 2009.
  34. ↑ Tea Party '09, February 28, 2009.
  35. ↑ Ayn Rand stars at Denver stimulus ‘tea party’ protest, Colorado Independent, February 28, 2009.
  36. ↑ Denver Tea Party, colorado, February 24, 2009.
  37. ↑ Houston Tea Party Society, In the News, Audio, Video, February 27, 2009.
  38. ↑ Houston's Tax Day tea party, February 27, 2009.
  39. ↑ DC Tea Party thrown at the White House, The Washington Examiner, February 27, 2009.
  40. ↑ 2009 Taxpayer Tea party, February 28, 2009.
  41. ↑ Michelle Malkin. Scenes from the D.C. Tea Party, February 27, 2009.
  42. ↑ Video from the DC Tea Party, Freedom Works, February 28, 2009.
  43. ↑ Joe the Plumber at D.C. Tea Party: No one on the Hill gives a rip about you, Hot Air, February 27, 2009.
  44. ↑ Raleigh Holds 'Tea Party' To Protest Government, Raleigh Telegram, March 25, 2009.
  45. ↑ http://www.freedomworks.org/press-releases/freedomworks-co-sponsoring-taxpayer-tea-parties-ac
  46. ↑ 'Tea Party' Protests In 35 Cities, March 2, 2009.
  47. ↑ TCOT Report, The TCOT Report.
  48. ↑ Marc Ambinder. Tea Parties, Pajamas, and Media/Event Symbiotics, The Atlantic, February 25, 2009.
  49. ↑ “Going Galt” and the next Tea Party wave, Michelle Malkin, March 4, 2009.
  50. ↑ Rush Limbaugh. Obama Responded to Tea Parties with $100 Million in "Budget Cuts", RushLimbaugh.com, April 21, 2009.
  51. ↑ 51% View Tea Parties Favorably, Political Class Strongly Disagrees, Rasmussen Reports, April 20, 2009.
  52. ↑ http://www.TeaPartyPatriots.org
  53. ↑ PR Newswire. Tea Party Numbers Released: 2 Million, 2 Thousand, Breitbart, April 29, 2010.
  54. ↑ Gardner D, "A million march to US Capitol to protest against 'Obama the socialist'," The London Daily Mail, September 14, 2009. Accessed September 16, 2009.
  55. ↑ Tea Party Movement Denounces Media Corruption, Lookingattheleft.com, October 19, 2009.
  56. ↑ True grass-roots effort? The 'pink slips' campaign, WND.com, November 25, 2009
  57. ↑ Heraldric: Or a rattlesnake sable and or coiled as to strike, facing sinister, on a bed of grass vert; motto "Don't Tread On Me"
  58. ↑ Seton Motley. NBC, CNN and MSNBC All Assign Communist LaRouche's Obama-Hitler Poster to Conservatives, Limbaugh, NewsBusters, August 12, 2009.
  59. ↑ Baker B, "ABC, CBS and NBC Try to Discredit 'Tea Party' Protests," NewsBusters, 16 April 2009. Accessed September 16, 2009. Baker does a side-by-side comparison of coverage of the Tax Day Tea Parties and of several pro-immigration rallies held on 1 May 2006.
  60. ↑ Michael Patrick Leahy. In Pep Talk to Democrats Yesterday, Obama Used Crude Term to Slur Conservatives, The TCOT Report, November 8, 2009.
  61. ↑ see "WSJ/NBC News Poll: Tea Party Tops Democrats and Republicans," Wall Street Journal Dec. 16, 2009

See Also

External Links

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