HOW THE TEA PARTY LOST ITS WAY

FROM MEDIA ROOTS

How the Tea Party Lost its Way

November 24, 2013

The Tea Party’s strong push for the phony government shutdown exemplifies just how ridiculous this political group has become. For Tea Party members such as Ted Cruz and Sarah Palin to lead a rally in DC against the government shutdown after they themselves lobbied for it is beyond absurd. It’s also safe to say that if Sarah Palin of all people is promoted as a ‘leader’ of any movement, it’s a sign of serious trouble.

Yet these recent government theatrics stand in sharp contrast to the true origin of the Tea Party, which manifested as a grassroots, anti-establishment political movement consisting of Ron Paul supporters, anti-war activists, and 9/11 Truthers.

The Tea Party began as a unified movement that crossed party lines, and became a strong factor of support for Ron Paul in the 2008 presidential elections. Through this movement’s grassroots efforts, the entire nation became aware of his ideas.

However, the growing popularity of the original Tea Party was opportune for exploitation by the establishment, and over the past five years it’s been completely co-opted and astroturfed by the Republican party establishment. Sadly, talking points from Tea Party politicians now consist of little more than mindless attacks against Obama and the Democratic party.

It’s undeniable that Obama has been a complete disaster for America, and there are many legitimate reasons to criticize his presidency – including drone warfare, continuation of Bush’s foreign policy, immunity for Bush cabinet war criminals, increased surveillance power, continued support of Israel’s criminal apartheid state, perpetual economic domination by Wall Street and the Federal Reserve, just to name a few.

However, instead of focusing on the multitude of valid criticisms about these destructive policies, the Tea Party has decided to target Obama for the most asinine reasons imaginable. These ridiculous accusations range from Obama being a communist to a Muslim who is allowing the Muslim Brotherhood to infiltrate this government.

By parroting the most insane rhetoric from the pages of Glenn Beck’s website The Blaze (the man who compared Ron Paul supporters and 9/11 activists to domestic terrorists) and World Net Daily, the Tea Party has morphed into the John Birch Society on steroids, with a level of paranoia not seen since the days when many Americans believed there was a communist living under every roof.

Although it would probably be wrong to claim that everyone who supports the Tea Party endorses this rhetoric, it’s so prevalent within its political ranks that it’s difficult not to associate the entire movement with its most outspoken representatives. At this point, the ongoing failure of decent Tea Party people to speak out and criticize the crazies who claim to speak in their name amounts to a blanket endorsement.

Washington DC’s recent ‘Million Vet March’ is another example of just how pathetic the Tea Party has become. The spectacle of phony partisan outrage was organized by some of the biggest warmongers on the Hill, including John ‘Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb Iran’ McCain’s 2008 presidential running mate Sarah Palin, as well as Ron Paul hater and Zionist shill Mark Levin, who actually threatened to lead a half million veterans to DC if anyone was harmed while trying to visit their memorial. What’s especially shameful is how these conscienceless liars prey on and exploit the patriotism of elderly wheelchair bound veterans in order to promote their partisan agenda designed to prop up the most extreme side of the GOP.

Ironically, those who have positioned themselves as the ultimate troop loving patriots representing American values have had no problem sending US soldiers to die in foreign conflicts based on known lies and deception. If these politicians even remotely cared about veterans then they should be focusing their outrage on the epidemic of military suicides, which last year eclipsed the number of soldiers killed in battle in Afghanistan. Considering how Ron Paul received the most military donations of any presidential candidate in both 2008 and 2012, the issue of veterans is clearly something that the true Tea Party would have brought attention to.

Of course, current Tea Party sponsored events also wouldn’t be complete without the delusional rantings of those who believe that Obama is a fanatical Muslim hell bent on implementing Sharia Law in the US. For example, Christian Tea Party leader Larry Klayman recently called for Obama to ‘put down the Quran’ and leave DC. Although this kind of extreme rhetoric might not be reflective upon the majority of Tea Party or conservatives in general, a Pew Research poll taken during the 2012 presidential campaign showed that 30 percent of conservative voters believe that Obama is a Muslim. Given this embarrassingly out of touch reality, it’s no wonder why the Tea Party is considered fringe politics.

In 2007, Ron Paul echoed Sinclair Lewis’ famous warning that ‘Fascism will come to America wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.’ Unfortunately, this prediction might be realized if current trends continue. The Tea Party could have been a voice for real change; instead, the very people who marginalized Ron Paul while standing in opposition to his core values have mutated the movement into a partisan political tool, used to push for everything it originally stood against.

Written by Gregory Mccarron for Media Roots