Tea Party Shuffle

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1. Time to #TeaParty (April 15th)! | Ft. Hard Knox says:

   April 15, 2009 at 7:05 am

   [...] The Tea Party Shuffle [...]

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2. Tax Day Tea Parties - You’re Invited « Green Country Values says:

   April 15, 2009 at 7:08 am

   [...] The Tea Party Shuffle [...]

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Comments

1. Bill Smith, ARRA Editor says:

   April 15, 2009 at 10:09 am

   I agree with much that you have said except for your comment: “disturbing at best considering the GOP has been nearly as responsible as Democrats for the growth of government. I don’t believe for a minute that the RNC wants in on this because it supports the philosophy behind it. The GOP wants to glom onto what appears to be a solid movement because they see a political benefit, not because they’re behind us.”

   The MAJORITY of republicans are the majority in this conservative movement. The majority of Independents are not necessarily “conservative.” The majority of independents voted for Obama. Most people including Republicans have not even read the stated principles of the Republican Party.

   For example in Arkansas, and this is true for other states, we would not even be having many of the TEA Parties if Republicans were not involved. Also, look at the identified sponsors. Wonder who decides which groups were sponsors – obviously the people controlling the website. Freedom Works and American Solutions are headed by Republicans. Most of the members in Smart Girl Politics are Republicans. Most of the conservative twitterers following TCOT are Republicans either publically or in advocating for Republicans at election time. The former director of the Citizen’s Against Government Waste is a Republican who spoke out strongly against anyone including Republicans who were wasting money. He is now running as a Republican against a 75% RINO (my biased percentage).

   All politics with regard to electing members of Congress is local and it is time for conservative independents stop painting the Republicans with a false broad brush. It is the Republican Party and not the Democrat”ic” or the wannabe 2O plus third parties that will be able to stop the rollercoaster ride into socialism. But, this will not happen if some people don’t stop taking cheap shots at the majority of Republicans who work hard to defend conservative principles and values in the United States.

   While there have been mistakes in the past by elected individual Republicans, this subject has already been beaten to death. Another major problem in the past not addresses is that most conservatives once they voted (if they voted) choose to forfeit their citizen responsibility of remaining involved in having oversight and holding their elected officials responsible. Also many were unwilling for numerous excuses to support watchdog organizations – often because these groups were “not just like them on 100% of the issues.

   It is time to stop the anti-GOP rhetoric or the backlash will be infighting among conservatives and a rise of anti-other conservative “labels” which will prevent the conservative coalition from emerging. This is just what the Democrats and their leadership wants! We need all conservatives be they social conservatives, economic conservatives, National defense conservatives to be together in a coalition. And kicking sand in each others face is destructive. Be pro events not anti-conservative groups and organizations!

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   • Ron says:

     April 15, 2009 at 10:19 am

     Bill,

     You misunderstand my statement. I am not denegrating rank and file Republicans. It is the GOP leadership I am opposed to. They got us into this by spending like there was no tomorrow. Certainly there are exceptions but when the RNC pulls out all the stops to support RINOs like Arlen Spector, I’m done with the RNC.

     I’d also say you have it backward when you say, “The MAJORITY of republicans are the majority in this conservative movement.” I think it’s the other way around and many of those conservatives are disillusioned at best and have left the party at worst. I am among those who no longer calls himself a Republican but I am decidedly a conservative.

     I stand by my statement that is not a partisan issue and attempts to make it partisan are counter productive. This is not about party it is about ideology. Bigger government vs. smaller government. No one can say with a straight face that the GOP is the party of smaller government today. Their record gives the lie to that claim.

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     • Bill Smith, ARRA Editor says:

       April 15, 2009 at 12:31 pm

       Good Points – thanks for the clarification. However, it is not the GOP (organization) but individual elected Republicans who by their actions may be at issue and redressed.

       For the record, numerous Republicans are being called on to be the speakers at the TEA Parties below are only a very small list of the total:
       Dick Armey former House Majority Leader
       Newt Gingrich former Speaker of the House
       Former Gov Mike Huckabee {Janet Huckabee is speaking at another event).
       Governor Mark Sanford
       Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) & 9 other House Republicans will be speaking at events.

       Also, when it comes to addressing positions of our new leader, BHO; I found it interesting that one of the major organizers of the Tea Party effort proudly told the press that they had voted for Bob Barr which means in reality that they cast their vote in effect for the socialist agenda of BHO. It is this type of immature and or radical actions that placed our country at risk. Bob Barr, a former Republican when convenient to be elected as a Congressman, then turns third party when he lost the support of the people in his state.
       Unfortunately, it is these types of radical positions that would rather pull down our great country in a belief that they could do better than their forefathers did in establishing our Republic. And in their new order of things would definitely not support the positions of the social conservatives (especially those whom are Christians). Neither the activists in the Libertarian Party nor the Constitutional Party would find themselves acceptable to each other after a short period of time together. There is no room in their positions for acceptance of what they perceive as objectionable in the others’ positions. One group would prefer no references to God and the other would place God center stage. Whereas, at present the Republican Party has provided a melting pot for conservatives to have the opportunity to work together in a coalition – honoring God, the Constitution but at the same time agreeing that personal freedom should not be infringed by the government unless such action damages society as a whole.

       In the end, do conservatives believe that a Republic is our best defense against mob rule or the final extremes of kings, fascists, dictators, religious zealots, etc. running a country? Or are we now willing to destroy the Great Experiments. People have a right to protest and redress their grievances and I will be right there with them for if I don’t stand with them, who will stand went I have mine to express. But while addressing truth of actions taken and consequences experienced, let’s not deny or reject the truth of purpose. As an inspired writer once wrote, “there is nothing new under the sun.” Let’s stand for the Republic (Government) while we stand against the failures and bad decisions of various elected representatives, senators, and administrative bureaucrats.

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       • Ron says:

         April 15, 2009 at 12:57 pm

         We’ll likely have to agree to disagree. But let me say that Republican speakers and/or leaders had nothing to do with organizing these tea parties. They were after thoughts and worked to insert themselves into the events. Michael Steele attempted to do so and was politely refused. The same occurred with many other tea parties where elected Republicans asked to speak and were refused. In each case, the decision was a local decision having nothing to do with the GOP. And where there will be Republican speakers, like my own tea party in Charleston, SC, it was also a local decision, not a GOP decision and those speakers are NOT part of the current GOP leadership.

         You can try all day to make this a partisan event but that will not make it so. This is as much a response to a lack of GOP leadership as it is to Democrat policies. There is no true leadership in the GOP, period. It is a floundering party that has lost its way. I’m totally prepared to come back if the current worthless leadership can be replaced but I’ve long since stopped giving to the RNC. I only support individual candidates whom I judge worthy of my support.

         As for those who voted for Barr, I again disagree with your assessment. I’m no Barr supporter but I’ve argued for some time now that we are in the mess we’re in because conservatives have continued to hold their collective noses and vote for the “lesser or two evils.” What we’ve failed to grasp is that we’ve still voted for evil. We’ve consistently rewarded bad behavior from GOP candidates and incumbents because we fear something worse. All the while the country has continued its slow march left. There are no conservative victories unless you define victory as slowing the other side down. We’ve constantly given ground, sometimes slower, sometimes faster. We never take ground back.

         I’ve abandoned that line of thinking because it has encouraged the GOP to veer to the left. The Republican Party MUST learn that it cannot win without conservatives. I’m tired of conservatives being the Republican equivalent to blacks in the Democrat Party. We’ve been taken for granted just like blacks have in the DNC because of the thinking that says “where else are they going to go?” Not me. I refuse to be part of the problem any longer.

         I feel pretty certain you won’t agree with my assessment and that’s fine. It took me a long time to get there myself. But there it is and don’t feel the need to endlessly justify myself for it.

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       • Jenn Sierra says:

         April 15, 2009 at 4:25 pm

         Wow! Bill and Ron, you’ve done an excellent job of demonstrating exactly why the liberals and progressives are currently in power in the U.S..

         I believe you’re both right, in prinicple. There’s a third element, however, that isn’t being discussed here or anywhere else, and it’s that of the voter, and the fact that most conservative and/or Republican voters are educated (i.e. “brainwashed”) in the same schools as the liberals and/or Democrats.

         I’d be willing to wager that most of the folks attending these Tea Parties couldn’t tell you exactly which taxes or legislation they are protesting. Most couldn’t tell you who they voted for in the last election for any office except the President. Most have absolutely no idea how their Congressmen are voting. I have spoken to adults recently (since the last election) who need a refresher course on the difference between the political “right” and “left” and between “liberals” and “conservatives,” and whether Obama is a “Democrat” or “Republican” before they can answer a straight question about which side they are on.

         Then, add to that the fact that most of the Representatives that these uneducated voters elected aren’t even reading the bills they are signing into law…and are oblivious to the why what they are doing is ruining our country. That applies to the (R’s) and (D’s) alike.

         Until the average American voter wakes up and starts caring enough to educate himself or herself about what’s going on in our country and the world beyond what is reported on the evening news and in the newspaper – the differences between conservatives, moderates, liberals, democrats and republicans is largely going to be academic, and not reflected in reality.

         Maybe these Tea Parties will at least help remedy that.

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