The Tea Party then and The Tea Party now

     As most Americans know, a group of colonists, dressed as Native Americans, boarded ships and threw crates of tea into the Boston Harbor.  This became known as the Boston Tea Party.  The protesters objected to being forced to purchase tea from the East India Tea Company for two reasons: 1) they could not buy tea from any other source and 2) they had to pay tax added to the price of the tea.  The colonists opposed the tax because they did not believe Parliament had the right to levy taxes against them since they were not represented in Parliament: "No taxation without representation."  Parliament, of course, insisted that all British colonies were represented in Parliament.  The colonists did not object to paying any taxes at all.  Nor did the colonists believe that Parliament did not have the power to tax or that the taxes were too high.  The men who took part in the Tea Party that night believed that they must have a voice in Parliament.  That their rights as British citizens must not be denied.
     The present day Tea Party objects to paying taxes they believe are too high.  They believe government spends too much and uses taxes to regulate too much.  Ironically, the colonists in 1773 believed that levying taxes to regulate was appropriate and acceptable.  The present day Tea Party uses quotes from the past to justify their positions.  They also state that they are not a political party.  However, they have clearly allied themselves with the Republican party to the extent that candidates seek their support in order to get elected.  They have also targeted Republican office holders who hold moderate political views.  Additionally they have contributed to attempts to suppress the rights of voters by sending lists of thousands of names to supervisors of elections stating that those names might be fraudulent.  Their concern for voter fraud would be admirable if not for the fact that the lists they submit are composed of voters who tend to vote for Democratic candidates.
     The very idea of attempting to deny citizens the right to vote is a betrayal to the colonists who gave their lives to gain our independence.  Perhaps the Tea Party needs to rethink their ideology or, at the very least, change their name.


Read more about it:

The Boston Tea Party, 1773

Tea Party Platform

Voter Harassment, Circa 2012

Paul Ryan and changing Washington

Rep. Paul Ryan said, "If President Obama can't change Washington, we need to change presidents."  This statement either demonstrates Rep. Ryan's ignorance or irresponsibility.  If Rep. Ryan honestly believes that any President has the power to "change Washington" and somehow make the members of Congress cooperate with one another so that legislation is passed, then Rep. Ryan does not really understand what a President can and cannot do.  The President can hope for and work toward creating an atmosphere of cooperation, but can never force it. 

Rep. Ryan, does not believe a President can "change Washington" and that makes his statement irresponsible and misleading.  Rep. Ryan knows that the reason Congress is not functioning properly is because his party has made defeating President Obama in 2012 their primary objective.  He also knows that blaming President Obama, while implying that Mitt Romney can "change Washington" makes for a good sound bite.  His statement is the kind of rhetoric the Republican base seem to like and are willing to believe without question regardless of how untrue the statement may be.

Words of wisdom

"I would like to speak briefly and simply about a serious national condition. It is a national feeling of fear and frustration that could result in national suicide and the end of everything that we Americans hold dear....

I speak as briefly as possible because too much harm has already been done with irresponsible words of bitterness and selfish political opportunism. I speak as simply as possible because the issue is too great to be obscured by eloquence. I speak simply and briefly in the hope that my words will be taken to heart.

To displace [the current Democratic administration] with a Republican regime embracing a philosophy that lacks political integrity or intellectual honesty would prove equally disastrous to this nation... I don't want to see the Republican Party ride to political victory on the Four Horsemen of Calumny -- Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry and Smear.

I doubt if the Republican Party could -- simply because I don't believe the American people will uphold any political party that puts political exploitation above national interest. Surely we Republicans aren't that desperate for victory....

As members of the Minority Party, we do not have the primary authority to formulate the policy of our Government. But we do have the responsibility of rendering constructive criticism, of clarifying issues, of allaying fears by acting as responsible citizens.

I don't like the way the Senate has been made a rendezvous for vilification, for selfish political gain at the sacrifice of individual reputations and national unity....

... As an American, I want to see our nation recapture the strength and unity it once had when we fought the enemy instead of ourselves.

It is with these thoughts I have drafted what I call a 'Declaration of Conscience'..."

Statement of Senator Margaret Chase Smith
June 1, 1950

     Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith was the first one to stand up against the very powerful Senator from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy.  Senator McCarthy destroyed people's lives by accusing them of being communists.  He also said he had proof that communists had infiltrated President Harry Truman's administration as well as the State Department.
     Senator Margaret Chase Smith's words are as relevant today as they were sixty-two years ago.  Unfortunately, no one in the Republican Party has the courage to speak them and the conservative Republicans who control their Party are intent on using the same tactics of fear and bigotry that Senator McCarthy used.


Read more about it:
A Declaration of Conscience

Greetings!

Greetings and welcome to my blog.  I have a Bachelor's Degree in History with a concentration in Early American political and Constitutional History and Abraham Lincoln.  I majored in History because of my passion for and love of American History.  I am a moderate democrat and a flag waving American who understands that the leaders of this country do not always make the best choices.  I believe in the principles set forth in the Declaration of Independence, the government created by the Constitution and the country Abraham Lincoln and so many others died to preserve.



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