A big THANK YOU to all Tea Party Patriots. WE THE PEOPLE will bring AMERICA back. Don't Tread On Us!

Uh-huh.......next time, remember to bring an American flag to your national convention.

Some one ought to get Ron Paul up here!!! Seems to me though the far right of the republican party wants to run your personal life (religion,ect) just as bad as the far left of the democrats want's to dictate your social values and checkbook?!! I'm a registered Democrat, but I vote more often then not for Republicans. The problem is that a crook, is a crook, and it doesn't matter what side of the isle your sitting on. My gut tells me at this point the only hope is 3rd party candidates with allegiances to no one, but the people that elected them. Until then my Stars and Stripes will continue to fly upside down as a sign of a country and a state in distress.

Ayuh, all 600 Tea Party members remaining nationwide attended the national convention. The place was jammed. Pay no attention to the man behind the computer screen busily adding crowd scenes to any filmed footage and still photos...

And be sure and bring your NAZI flag too.

Mr. Obama ran on a campaign of change , remember that and change Washington politicians as often as you can. Watch your back's Olympia and Susan.

I was a Republican for over 40 years. I have watched as the party became more and more like the Democrat party. It is now impossible to tell one progressive from another without a playbook. Socialism is on the rise. I am now a proud member of the Constitution Party and am very impressed with the Tea Party movement. The Socialist-Progressive movement is so amazed that all they can do now is name-call and scream. I suspect we will see a movement back towards the Constitution over the next few years. God bless America!

We as a country are facing greater challenges to our freedoms and life style than ever before. I have always been amazed by the transformation of a so called reasonable and intelligent person when they become elected to public office. To me it seems to happen to many of our elected officials, be it local, county, state or a federal office, they become indifferent, arrogant and truly believe they know what is best for the electorate and money is no object. They probably have convinced themselves that this “TEA PARTY THING” is little more than a passing fad and not the calm before the storm/revolt. I pray that this revolt will only be at the polls and not on the streets.

I have often said that 1/3 the people vote and 2/3 stay home and bitch. Our government officials have created such a vacuum in peoples lives, literally sucking the life blood from the citizens, especially lower and middle class citizens through excessive taxes and over regulation that we may see 2/3 vote.

Our elected officials in Washington have been bickering amongst themselves while American profits and savings are being robbed by a few select individuals, American jobs are being lost, American health care system isn’t being resolved but they certainly know how to spend money for so called stimulus plans, bailouts that reward crooks, rebuilding other nations and God knows what else.

I think it is high time our legislatures in Washington develop some RULES OF ENGAGEMENT/CODE OF CONDUCT to follow. They must get back to serving America and it’s citizens first and foremost. I am so tired of hearing the same old excuses when spending away our future, “THE COMPANY WAS TOO BIG TO LET FAIL” or my all time favorite is “IT WAS IN OUR NATIONAL INTEREST”. There is no company or country that is too big to fail, HISTORY 101. It was not in our National Interest KOREA 101, VIETNAM 101 and it looks like we may have to add Afghanistan and Iraq to this list of misguided national interests if our legislature keep allowing politics and personal pride to mismanage our armed forces missions. They should let the Generals fight the war while they deal with what we elected them to do create jobs, health care reform, reduce the national debt, protect the environment, insure Americans safety at home and leave a great legacy for our children, not a demoralized and bankrupt state.

What concerns me most is that history has a way of repeating itself. DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED FOLLOWING THE LAST “TEA PARTY” AMERICAN PATRIOTS HAD? This movement may be a WAKE UP CALL for all elected officials, we have had enough, the party is over and it is time to straighten up and fly right.

vote the bumbs out this november (from whatever party), who are destroying our state/country !

It's the Democratic Party, not the "Democrat Party."

DemocRAT Party

I left the repub party after 40 years myself 3 months ago.. and am now an independent.. the tea party movement is real and the only hope yet for us surviving and not being employed and owned by the Chinese goverment.. As with Scott Brown, the repubs, they are still the lesser of 2 evils...

There have been many good observations within this thread, but they cumulatively add up to one thing: We refuse to make the necessary tough changes required to decouple from a criminal system that has kept us subservient for decades. These include the following:

1- Overturn the dubious ratification of the 16th Amendment (no small feat) and reclaim the original language and spirit of the Constitution.

2- Elimination of the Federal Reserve System and its scam of fiat currency, and return monetary control to the U.S. Treasury as was mandated by the Constitution. This would also necessitate the return to a true value-based (gold/silver) standard of monetary stability. Also gone would be the Fed's illegal enforcement arm, the I.R.S., along with myriad support "agencies." The Federal Reserve is an un-Constitutional concept and its birth in 1913 literally stole our government.

3- Install Supreme Court justices who will review the Constitutionality of the above travesties (currently considered "settled law"), otherwise we will make no progress here.

These are the issues that have been addressed by Robert Schultz and his "We The People" movement (now mired in legal battles), and such people as Ron Paul, Dennis Kucinich, and many reputable economists. It is unfortunate, but not surprising, that these and similar voices have been relegated to the realm of "fringe" status. It is also evident that many people are unaware of the fraud and deceit that has been perpetrated on them in the name of "God and Country." Unless those who continue to believe this fraud can open themselves to a new understanding of our history (replete with such concepts as "strategies of tension" to promote fear, and the ideologies of Fabianism and Illuminism, et al.), we will never break the chains of feudal slavery with which we have been held captive. The "Tea Party" concept is fine, but may not be limited to just the voting booth to be effective. We are quietly running out the Constitutional clock as our liberties are being eroded. Our founding fathers were libertarian revolutionaries who freed our country from the same forces that now threaten us today.

I love my country, my Government scares the hell out of me.

"... the effect of the tea party movement in local and national politics remains to be seen" WHAT ??? Prme state icons of both parties have fallen by the wayside despite numerous Washington celebrity jaunts to support the local candidate. Virginia, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New York.. Fini. Polling data show that all incumbents are in serious trouble. Now that Obama's cap & trade, global warming, health care initiatives have gone splat.. all Obama has to do in introduce his very unpopular Amnesty bill and the circle is complete.. wipeout in November.

It's starting to look like we've got a new Messiah: Sarah Palin. Be careful - it's sort of feeling like the specious euphoria surrounding pre-election Obama.

It's been interesting to watch this movement (manufactured by FoxNews) spread. I am so turned off by the simplistic, black and white thinking that they're trying to promote. I'd like to think people are capable of more than that.

We never had all these problems until we had free trade agreements ,and until we elect polititians that do not support free trade , these problems will only get worse everything cost as much now as it did before free trade and most things cost more now. Lets not wait until our standard of living is below that of a third world country which is where we are headed, our only hope is to get rid of the current polititians before this country is completely destroyed.The only reason free trade exist is because the current polititians are only concerned with high profits for big business,wall street and themselves.Obviously if they were concerned about the majority of Americans they would'nt have guided us to the point we are at now.

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It would be great if we knew how to get involved, the only mention of a connection is Lois Bloomer, how do we get in touch with her. Anxious to get involved and get these thugs, crooks, moonbats, and scumbags out of Washington and Augusta. Lets clear the playing field and start over with the format our forefathers so carefully laid out for us to follow.

Yes we have been misguided and outright lied to and led down the proverbial garden path. Most people who do a bad job get fired. SACK THE CORPORATE POLITICIANS NOW! AND VOTE INDEPENDANT!

These folks seem to be having a fun whining about things. They seem to be against a lot of stuff.

They say, throw the bums out! Give us our country back! Get government off our backs!

But they're not for anything.

The original tea party was specifically for certain law changes.

Exactly what changes do these folks want? I don't think they know.

The Tea Party movement and now its convention are interesting. Here are a few thoughts. Most of the comments on this article are quite well written and thoughtful, unlike much of the internet commentary encountered. I hope that reflects a higher standard of literacy in Maine.

As far as the Tea Party movement, there is a lot of sound and fury, but what specifically are the proposals? For the most part this is complaining without the responsibility of having actually to do anything. It's very easy to complain. It isn't so easy to make the decisions, often difficult decisions, and then to implement them. It isn't easy to negotiate the differences between people who have different views, and there are always people with different views, as the Tea Partiers are discovering within their own ranks. After difficult decisions have been made, supported by some and not by others, then comes the disagreement and complaints from the people, and there are always some, who did not get what they wanted.

Tom Tancredo spoke vociferously about people who could not speak English well being involved in the electoral process. I'm not quoting. I don't really want to take the time to read and quote, but that was the gist. I'm willing to bet that the first Tancredos to arrive on these shores didn't speak English well; Italian maybe. But he is here thanks to his ancestors and very much involved.

People hold the Constitution up as this sacred document and want to get back to it. Of course at the time the Constitution was written, women had no political rights, slavery was legal and wide-spread, and guns pretty much had to be loaded with one bullet at a time. People, regardless of social class, probably used outhouses to dispose of certain types of waste. There wasn't quite the necessity or concern then for environmental matters although people did die from the lack of environmental concern. I wonder what pornography was like before cameras and computers. It probably wasn't quite the social ill then as it is now considering that in later years The Scarlet Letter was probably thought to be a little scandalous. And there were only a few million people in this country, not a few hundred million. Terrorism? I suppose people on the frontier might have thought of Indians as "terrorists", and we know how that problem was handled. Imagine that we of the early 21st century had the responsibility for writing the basic set of laws for people living in the United States in 2240. We cannot even imagine what that world might be like.

It apparently cost these tax-conscious Tea Partiers over $500 to attend the convention. With 600 people attending that comes to $300,000. And I just heard that is going to cost $300 or so to hear Sarah Palin with over 1000 attending, another $300,000, but maybe Palin's speech is included in the $500. So far the only concrete plans coming from the convention is to have another one in July and to form a political action committee to raise money. Will the organizers keep the price of attending at $550, or could there be a little increase as they realize more accurately the profit potential of Tea Parties?

In an interview with a Tea Partier by CNN, the Tea Partier said the Constitution when written didn't require lawyers. He certainly hasn't spent any time studying the Constitution and its history. Marbury v. Madison was decided in 1803, and it certainly had lawyers trying to apply the Constitution. That was the case providing for judicial review.) There may have been even earlier Constitutional cases, but that one comes immediately to mind.

I'm sure the Tea Partiers are sincere and maybe their convention will turn into something. Looking back through American history reveals many fledgling movements, some succeed greatly, some fizzled, and some disappeared but made changes while they existed. We'll see.

I'm to a point where I vote for candidates I don't even agree with necessarily if I think they are honest, as in the last presidential election I voted for Ralph Nader. i really don't have much in common with him politically but I'd rather see my vote going to secure more 3rd party campaign funding then being used on a dem or repb who I am assured will sell me out and use my vote to slit my throat when elected to office. For the record I'm not a fan of FOX news Bangorian or any other corporate news media outlet with a corporate agenda.....I'm beer drinking, gun toting, NPR news listener so stick that in your smug hat :)

I am not a tea partier, but is this a news story or an editorial?

Stop socialism this November!

OMG, I sit here reading what semperfi wrote and find my head nodding in agreement. This doesn't happen often, but I urge anybody reading this to go up to the post from 6:43 am.

The Tea Party people spend a lot of time saying they are independent. Sure they are, an independent arm of the Republican Party. Let's see, Dick Armey helped arrange the organization of the rallies. He is one of the people who are powerful Republican operatives and has a sordid history while in office. The keynote speaker, who is paid about 100 thou. to appear, is Sarah Palin, the v.p. candidate for the Republican ticket. One of the ME coordinators is "Lois Bloomer of Hermon, who ran two tea parties in Maine last year and has organized today’s Penobscot County Republican Caucus."

Also, if anybody listened to the rhetoric from yesterday's events in Nashville, every time a Democrat was mentioned, the boos and catcalls grew loud. Independent like a branch is independent of the trunk of a tree.

What I wonder is where were these people when we were marching against the war in Iraq, when Bush was not including the cost in the budget in order to keep the deficiet under control? Yes, the political system needs to be shaken like the earthquake that devastated Haiti. But people who think the Tea Party people are anything but an arm of the Repubs will be sorel disappointed when the Repub. party apparatus tries to put them back into the bottle.

I too am against these massive deficiets the parties have run up in our names. I thought that when the Repubs took control in the early 90's that fiscal conservatism would prevail. I thought that when a "conservative" won the White House in 2000 it would mean austerity. Haha on me. This is the record of the Republicans in the 90s. This shows how the debt level has continued to climb, with the difference between income and outgo narrowing during the Clinton years (92-2000), then ballooning again during the Bush years. The main concern of Congress is re-election. They need to take care of the ones who funnel them money, screw the rest of us.

http://www.cbo.gov/budget/data/historical.pdf

I'm waiting for the tea-bagger crowd to come up with a 'purity pledge' to not enroll in Medicare when they are eligible and no longer employed. We can then all sit back and watch who comes rushing to their doors to offer comparable and affordable healthcare coverage. Any takers?

We The People need to set TERM LIMITS in November 2010 . Vote out incumbents ( Democrat or Republican ) Let us start anew with a group in Congress that does not know the way to the Men's or Ladies room . OH NO-That is what we have now

mainejeff - The Gadsden Flag (also known as a Hopkins flag or a "Dont Tread On Me" flag) is an American flag. It symbolizes the unification of our original colonies during the period of British occupation. Citizens of the colonies and members of the Continental Army rallied under this flag during the Revolution because it represents freedom and independence from tyranny and oppression. Check out its history – very interesting.

This smacks of confederacy...

To quote John Lennon, "If you want money for minds that hate, all I can tell you brother is that you have to wait."

If you love your country, vote out people who are borrowing and spending us into the grave. whether is republican or democrat.

If Sarah Palin is such a joke to the media, then why are they sequestering all of her emails and sifting through them to find dirt to discredit her. the media is showing us who our candidate should be, or someone like her. They are terrified of this woman.

I wonder how Diane sawyer would feel if we all could go through her emails over the last year. These people are despicable.

After reading this article I see a tremendous amount of assumptions of what us teaparty folks are. We want a responsible government who holds to the constitution limited National government and let the states make most of the frivolous laws which in recent history it being made from nationally on down.

I have scanned some the feedback from the comments and I am at loss of the negative comments made by so called know it all's as to what we stand for.

If you haven't figured it by now you probably never will.

If tea bags are tio be dumped, let's hope we get a time and place so we can get our hopper under the bridge. Anbody who can afford to dump tea bags must be Republican.

In response to John Doe's comment about Sarah Palin's e-mails. When Palin was elected governor of Alaska, she promised to have the most open and ethical administration ever; however, she immediately stopped giving press conferences and used private e-mails to hide the fact that her husband was deeply involved in making decisions about judicial and other appointments. Would you like your governor's wife reviewing state appointments? Would you like your governor to spend thousands of dollars to rewire Blaine House so he could use his tanning bed? Would you like your governor demanding that his son travel with him on the government's tab. She did.

A couple of other things about Palin. She was elected governor because the man she replaced was a scoundrel who appointed his daughter to the U.S. Senate.

She raised taxes on the oil industry which was probably the best thing she did. She grew up as the daughter of a school teacher and has enjoyed state provided health insurance for her entire life. Claiming that Wasilla is a small town on the edge of the wilderness is like saying Rockland is a small town near the Canadian border.

I've lived in Alaska for fifty years.

Don't worry - I'm sure the Obama administration has "plants" in the Tea Party, writing and recording anything and everything.

As a disgusted and totally disbelieving democrat, I welcome the tea party movement. The naysayers can scream all they want but the message is getting out there. This isn't just about getting rid of liberal/progressive democrats, I find it is about getting rid of any politician who wants to lead this country in a direction that the average American doesn't want. It appears this movement is for getting rid of the spend and spend and spend politicians no matter which party they come from. I am seeing people are becoming more astute in seeing how the Constitution has been ravaged by both parties and want to put a stop to it. These people involved want America to stay AMERICA and not be a Euoropean offspring. Nor do they want our government to slyly do a Hugo Chavez and dominate our whole system. Americans on the whole don't want handouts, they do believe in working for what they earn. Sorry if that offends anyone but not everyone who is a democrat feels we need to spread the wealth. Because most people aren't conned that the evil rich don't pay and it is only the poor and middle class who pay. I feel the tea party people are who best represent the true feelings of many Americans regardless of party affiliation. Of course the progressive left will see it different and cry nutcases. Maybe it isn't the middle and average American who are the true nutcases but actually want our government to govern, not run us or own us. You get what you vote for and we sure got it. BTW...don't forget...blame Bush but forget who controlled things for 2 years and forget who had filibuster power for all 8 yrs and forget who voted for many of the bills that got passed. The tea party it appears is blaming BOTH parties and I give them credit for doing something about it.

Bogger.. you got it right. Most here havn't a clue what the Tea Party Movement is all about. But it's not their fault .. the media including this newspaper is distorting the message. I like to think about it as the party of freedom and liberty loving Democrats that don't want the government in their wallets and fiscal conservative Republicans that don't want the government their bedrooms .. and includes lots of registered independents that desire a rational common sense approach for the efficient execution of government functions. Some members are Libertarians that prefer individualism over group think. Most are just tired of wittnessing the massive corruption that has envaded our politics.

Maine was one of the last breeding spots for the KKK. After hearing Tancredo's opening remarks it would seem that the shoe still fits well. Palin is wound up she charges $100,000, wow what motivation! Michelle Bachman backed out on ethics concerns?

That's quite an inference to draw CecilG......if I remember right that KKK meeting was in Rumford and enrolled 3 members???

The Tea Baggers are paying Saint Sarah $100K to speak at their event..........'nough said.

The Prophet George Carlin on who REALLY owns this country....enjoy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acLW1vFO-2Q

CecilG people from both political parties are upset and frustrated with what our elected representative are doing and more importantly, not doing. To try and smear the Tea Party Movement by linking them with a racist, murderous group just shows the depth some people (or parties) will do to discredit them. This movement is not any one party, one person or one ideology. They are normal every day people that are just plain feed up with politics as usual and have decided to try and do something about it. This country was founded by such people and maybe we are witnessing history with a second rebirth of our country.

I think I'll stick to coffee and cola ...

Looks like "tea parties" are becoming scams just like any other political fundraiser. Didn't think that tea baggers wanted to be considered that gulllible.

Sounds like Palin's husband was acting as the "shadow governor" of Alaska. Maybe not quite as bad as the situation in Minnesoata when Michelle Bachmann was running for office wearing her conservative religious background on her sleeve. She was getting far more participation and respect than she'd have in her church. Her husband Marcus was lurking behind everything. Caused some wags to repitch that old fundamentalist motto to WWMD (what would Marcus do). I've said before that both Palin and Bachman are lightweights.

It's becoming obvious that there's no middle ground on opinions of Palin, extreme love or extreme dislike (I won't use the H word). I think I'll stick to coffee and cola ...

Palin is donating her speaking fee back to the Tea party organizers. I have paid for social security and medicare my entire life, it is no different than a State/Federal penison. When the government pensions are all abolished I'll consider giving up what I paid for.

You mean people don't pay for their state/federal pensions?

TruthinMaine there is NO Social Security or Medicare bank account with your name on it just like there's not one with my name on it. You and I are all paying for the current recipients of these programs. To use a term we hear over and over during the Presidential debates, there is no "lock box" for Social Security or Medicare. The account you think is there is just smoke and mirrors.

No, the tax payers pay for thier State/Federal pensions and their salaries to boot. There may be no name on a SS or Mediacare account for me, but there is a Social Security number that has demanded I fund this program my entire working life. A life that spans decades and many, many thousands of dollars contributed to those Federal programs. Were not talking about the Ted Kennedy legislation that opened social security up for the disabled..it was never intended to suport the unfortunate who cannot work. Social Security was to provide a basic financial survival income stream for those who had worked and contributed to the system thier entire lives. Only progressive liberals are talking about reducing medicare and social security for the baby boomers approaching the age of benefit receipt.

mainejeff if you are referring the the "Gadsden" flag, it is an American flag and was the first flag of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corp.

See Obamacare

All I gotta say is wait till November....Actions will speak volumes...Barry will be one and done just like Carter as well...Mark my words....What is about to happen will make '94 look small in comparason...

If you had to pass an IQ test to vote then no one in the Tea Party would be able to vote. ;-D

If the Tea Baggers wanted to be taken seriously, why would the have Palin give the keynote? What a joke...

focaloca I see you profess to be a member of the open minded, fair, nonjudgmental, etc....crowd. You are one of the reasons this movement exists.

If they weren't so enthralled with Sarah, they'd have a lot more credibility. Certainly, intellect isn't a strong feature. Too many parrots, although I agree with the fundamental premise. The biggest mistake the Republicans could possibly make would be to run Sarah Palin. Nothing against her, but she'll sink her campaign all on her own. All nice, shiny, and looking for power without a clue.

What most posters are forgetting is this movement is not a Republican Party movement. It is not an anti-Democrat movement. It is a pro-America movement. People are feed up and this is the result of our elected representative not listening to those that elect them.

Getting Sarah Palin involved jn the tea party looks like the first two steps back,as the saying goes one step foreward two steps back not to mention paying her to speak.LOL

Sarah Palin has got to be a force to be reckoned with, she sure as hell scares the daylights out of the left wingers posting on here.... after reading her new book I think she is just what the tea party ordered. She is smart enough to know that the chances for a third party winning the Whitehouse is remote at best, either a Republican or a Democrat will win in November 2012 and she plans on winning on the Republican ticket, but the tea party ideals will go with her.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------On 2/6/10 at 1:15 PM, Celtic40 wrote:

As for your post Celtic40, I think you fall into the left wing category, I think she scares you and threatens the progressive socialist way of life that you hold so dearly, or your an oil man, or worse yet, a politician who found yourself on her bad side.......... I don't think for a minute that she pleased everyone in Alaska but she did have about 75% on her side so she had to do some things right.

If you folks think Palin is the answer, your movement will go nowhere. She truly is a joke...

The Tea Party convention in Nashville is not THE national convention; it is simply A convention. There will be more throughout the country. I think the Tea Party agenda should be one of endorsing candidates who meet with our standards; that is; fiscal responsibility, smaller government, lower taxes for small businesses, states rights & adherence to the Constitution & our founding fathers' ideals. What we do not need are progressives & they are presently in both parties.

This Tea Party convention is getting to be very entertaining. Not only are they convening in Nashville, but they are also arranging to meet on cruises. "Aruba, Jamaica, ooo I wanna take ya......", fun with fun. One of the cruising Tea Partiers thinks that President Obama can't be impeached because he isn't legally President. You know, he was born somewhere else and his birth certificate is a fake. I thought I had some stake in this as a good American, but now I'm beginning to have my doubts. My birth certificate shows my birth in the United States and my mother and father say I was born in the United States, but I've always thought that I looked suspiciously like a Canadian. I actually don't know where I was born. I guess I was too young to remember. So maybe I should just keep my mouth shut and let the genuine, bona fide, real, proof-positive, 100% Americans work this out. And getting back to that well-known Tea Party spokesman, Tom Tancredo, he certainly emphasized the Hussein when he mentioned President Barack Obama's name. I wonder why he did that. I wonder if in the days when Adolph Rupp coached basketball at the University of Kentucky, which included World War II, opponents were as able as Tom Tancredo to put that special emphasis on "Adolph" when talking about those Wildcats. And another thing, what kind of a name is Tancredo anyway. It ends in a vowel, and you know what they say about people whose names end in vowels.

I find it very amusing that the mere mention of Sarah Palin's name has the Liberals wailing and wetting themselves...LOL...Even more amusing is the Libs calling anyone who disagrees with them stupid...And they are the supposed "enlightened and tolerant ones"...LOL...I have one more thing to say...Senator Brown...LOL...

The tea-party movement is hardly a grass roots movement. There are some very large corporate sponsors who under the guise of earthy sounding names hire buses and organize via mass mailings to protest some rather distatsteful issue. Astro turf would be more closely relavant than grass roots. If this bunch had been so concerned with out of control spending they would have formed 8 yeas ago when the surplus we enjoyed turned into a deficit that these tea party people insist is all the doing of the democrats and Obama. As far as this being a mixture of Democrats and republicans, other than an occasional exception the large majority are Republican. By the way the "grass roots" ralley in Tennessee is a "for profit' event that Sarah Palin was to be paid $100,000. Her advisors have convinced her to donate it so as to not continue her very questionalble financial dealings.

i'll tread all over you tea party people. maybe it should be called the high school drop out party.

Y'all are just jealous. You know that Obama can't hold a candle to Palin. She's twice the man he'll ever be. And ten times the leader.

Hey I'm happy the tea baggers have picked Palin as a leader: now I don't have to worry!LOL

5:56 pm, I profess nothing of the sort. You assume too much. With that statement are you professing "to be a member of the open minded, fair, nonjudgmental, etc....crowd"? Puh-leeze.

palin might be twice the man all right. lol

Calling freedom loving conservatives tea baggers is as ignorant as calling a black person the 'n' word, a woman the 'b' word, a homosexual the 'q' word, or calling a Christian a Taliban. It show just how abhorently uneducated and rude you are.

I'd like to see Palin in Playboy....but not in politics. She is ignorant about everything.

BillORight , Get your medication changed!

Sarah Palin scares me......a body with a empty head.

Calling Sarah Palin twice the man Obama could be and 10 times the leader is so laughable, I'm glad I got the joke before I took you seriously because that type of statement, not in jest, would show just how abhorently uneducated and rude one is.

Mailman, can you name one corporation which backing the teaparty? Oh by the way just for starters like Palin said,"zero for three" and "hows all that hope change going for ah".

So good ole Sarah shows that in interviews she has the IQ of a grade-schooler and the Tea Party climbs aboard the Palin Express.....OMG, if she were president, the world would be back to the wonderful (you fill in the decade) and the US would become the dominant manufacturing nation again, we'd no longer be dependent on foreign oil, women could stay home and raise kids, etc.

Bringing a dummie to power isn't going to turn back time.....but it might make people feel better about themselves I suppose.

according to media, Sarah Palin will be donating the 100k back to the cause. Folks need to learn more about the Tea Party and assume less.

also why is everyone so afraid of Sarah Palin? Try as they may to discredit her, nothing truly damning has come out yet.

sarah palin is a genius. she is' the most politically sophisticated person to appear on the american scene in decades. her knowledge of domestic and foreign issues is truly awesome. and her command of the engish language make her a superb communicator.

I always knew that there were many ignorant and backward people in Maine. The Teabaggers prove it. About Palin. she is Trailer Trash from Wasilla AK. She is a total Air Head and Ignorant to her core. The whole family is dysfunctional from the alcoholic husband to the daughter with her Illegitimate kid.

sarah palin is also a nice person.

Palin is a twit. I'll know the end of the world is near if she is ever elected president.

It does appear that Sarah's been doing some homework since the Presidential election. Is that bad?

sarah palin is also pretty. and snarky, you don't cram for the presidency like afinal exam.

If she runs for President, she WILL get elected.

Nobody is "afraid" of Sarah Palin. I think people are more "afraid" of the popularity contest mentality of her supporters. They live on sound bites and carefully scripted lines. Ask her a question, out the window goes any indication of intellect. She's stupid. Plain and simple. Had McCain run almost anyone else for vice president, he would've won.

Sarah Palin is a fraud, and when the mainstream Republicans wake up I hope it is too late. She is a creation of one faction of the Alaska Repub. party (Stevens) against another faction (Murkowski). She was elected because she won the Repub primary, which in Alaska is tantamount to winning the election. When she assumed office, she packed the government with her cronies, regardless of qualifications. Her Secretary of Agriculture, for instance, was a childhood friend who had never worked in agriculture. Her qualification, as explained by Mrs. Palin, was that she "liked cows". So much for holding the bureaucrats to any standard. She was proven to be petty (see state police investigation), and when she thought she was too big for her britches, she abruptly resigned as governor.

Oh, and research has shown that she spent more money promoting her own book that all the Republican candidates since she llost the election. In 5 special elections to fill House of Representative seats since the 08 elections, Democrats have won all 5. The Republicans have won one Senate seat and you would think those who were on the winning side had just invented light.

Here's my prediction. Tea Party events have shown themselves to be such partisan, one note events (We hate that Socialist/Communist foreign born black man who is in the White House), that I am turned off. From where I sit, they seem to have leaders like Palin who insist that all solutions come from the extreme right, the Dems are right about nothing, and we need to elect Republicans to office. Does the Republican Party think that Tea Party activists will support candidates like Susan Collins or Olympia Snowe? Instead, they will nominate radical right candidates who will lose most general elections. Maybe this is the re-alignment of politics I have been hoping for, but I think in the long run it will only divide this country and give party bosses more incentive to bend the rules to prevent the Tea people from gaining traction. In other words, they will be to the Repubs what African Americans are to the Democratic Party.

I just listened to her prepared remarks....

Let's see, her great new thoughts go something like this....

She loves America

She loves liberty

She loves freedom

Sarah for president!

Duh.

mongooso, I take your point. But you are referring to the notion of "experience vs. booklearning" . She is now trying to grow her experience, along with studying the issues. What else should she do? Obama is not considered to have been highly experienced, prior to his election, and I think sometimes it shows. Nobody can deny that he "did great on the final exam (election)".

The TEA Party movement is non-partisan. While there are more Republicans who would be attracted to the ideals, this movement is not strictly a Republican Movement. Some RINOS are just as irresponsible and power-seeking as the Loons on the Left of the Democrat Party.

I do not care which party you identify with or if you identify to any political party or movement. What I would ask you is this:

"Do you think or believe that a government should continue to Expand in Size, Expenditures and Control when it is Bankrupt? And, do you believe that a Political Party should use your Tax Dollars and all The Money They Can Borrow, Steal or Print to expand the Size and Power of Government, and to Buy Voting Blocs and To Pay Off Supporters?"

If you answered Yes, to this question, You are A Radical, regardless of Party Affiliation. Well, the current President, who is a Radical Democrat, and the Current U.S. congress is Controlled by Radical Democrats, and they are in the process of Thoroughly Destroying Our Economy with their spending and expansion of size, power and expenditures of the U.S. Government. And, of course, they use the Divide and Conquer strategy by spreading Class Envy and Class Hatred, and they know exactly what they are doing.

As part of the so-called Stimulus Bill, groups such as ACORN (A radical democrat organizing group made up of deadbeats, thugs, and subversives) got 8 billion dollars to do the Liberal Democrat Bidding To Register Voters for the Democrat Party and As Pay Back for their corrupt and subversive support during Obama's campaign for president. The Stimulus Bill is nothing more than a Liberal Democrat Slush Fund that has been used to Pay Back LIberal Democrat Supporters, and to be used to Buy Future Elections. They have currently Squandered about one-third of the Sitmulus Slush Fund in paying back their supporters and funding their subversive and corrupt activities, and they are saving the other 2/3 to Buy Future Elections in 2010 and 2012.

If the Republicans in Congress or the White House had ever had such a Tax Payer Slush Fund, you would not hear the end of it from the MSM, and it would never get approved. Obama and this congress have pulled out every Dirty, Corrupt, and Subversive trick in the book.

The TEA Party Movement Was Spawned by this Irresponsible President and Congress who approved this Huge 800 billion dollar Slush Fund in the middle of a Recession. And, the only way it passed the Senate was with the Votes of Olymipia Snowe and Susan Collins, both of the state of Maine. These 2 ladies are not Conservatives and they are Not Traditional Republicans. They are RINOS, and if the people of Maine who call themselves Conservatives and Responsible Citizens, you will Replace these Two Traitors. What did Maine Receive For Their Votes? Did the U.S. Government Pay Off Maine's Debts or Fund your Medicaid Program which will allow the rest of the country to pay for it? What did Maine's Citizens get for Snowe's and Collins' treasonous acts?

I believe that the majority of Mainers are good, hardworking conservative people. People who work for a living do not generally embrace a Socialist State that says that Everybody should enjoy the same things in life as does somebody who works and pays for it... I, for one, do not appreciate a government that provides Food, Housing, Medical Care, Utility Payments, and all the other amenities and necessities of life for Able-Bodied Men and Women who are Physically and Mentally capable of taking care of themselves. But, that is what the Liberal Democrats (Socialists and Communists and other RAdicals) have done to this nation over the past 45 or 50 years. They have created a Huge and Powerful and Wasteful Federal Bureaucracy that Mandates That Deadbeats Ought To Be Dependent on Government to pay for their Upkeep, and these same Voting Bloc of Deadbeats vote Liberal Democrat Everytime, and the Liberal Democrats know this and that is why they Built This Worthless System to begin with. They Buy Voting Blocs. And, then the same government commandeered the public school system and Dumbed Down the Entire Population and Brainwashed them to the point that they are Incapable of taking Care of Themselves because they lack basic literacy skills and they have not developed their intellect, and they have not learned Responsibility, Respect and Gratitude or a Work Ethic. All these values have been replaced with a Demanding Entitlement Mentality. We now have fseveral generations of families, mostly one parent families with no male head of household, who have never held a job, and do not even aspire to do so. These poor souls truly believe that the Government has one purpose and one purpose only, and that is that the Government Is Supposed to Take Care of Them. And, these same Illiterate and Ignorant Citizens believe that all Obama or anyother President has to do is Just Print More Money. These illiterates have no concept of the monetary system and what it takes to earn income because they have never worked for anything that they have. When you do not work for what you have, you do not develop Gratitude or Respect or Become Responsible. Instead, you Learn to Be Dependent, and You Come To Believe That Your Are Entitled to Be Taken Care of.

This is what the TEA Party Movement is all about. Taking Our Government and Our Country Back, and Downsizing the Size, Power and Expenditures of the Federal Bureaucracy which current and past presidents and the congress has used to Bankrupt the Country, while forever Coming Up With New Laws, Regulations, Agencies, Departments, Bureaus, Commissions and Czars that Control and Then Tax Every Aspect of Our Lives. And, at the same time, Regulating and Strangling Industries and Manufacturers and Taxing Them Out of Existence, which drives good jobs overseas to Escape a Progressive and Strangling Federal Bureaucracy.

And, these same Bureaucrats and Politicians allow tens of millions of Squatters to Invade Our Nation, which further erodes the Wage Base and Tax Base as these Illegals Invaders Pay No Taxes, and Yet Become another Large Group of Deadbeat Leeches who Are Bankrupting Our Social Services the same as our Home Grown Deadbeats and Leeches. At least our Home Grown Deadbeats are Citizens. We now have a bunch of Lunatics in this government who Believe that Illegal Aliens are Entitled to Every Citizen Right. This is insane, I do not care what party you belong to. Also, we now have a President and Congress who Believe that America's Enemies have the Same Rights as Legal Citizens, and they are gearing up to spend a billion dollars to put on a Show Trial of Enemy Combatants, which will further Drive Up the National Debt, but will bring a Lot of Income to Dead Beat Attorneys who will be the Benefactors fo the Hundreds of Millions in Legal Fees that this Government Is Forcing, We The People who Pay Taxes, to Pay for.

If this sort of thing does not upset you or Rile You Up, you must be either an Idiot and do not understand what is going on, or you are One of the Subversives or Criminals who are part of this Maniacal and Corrupt Scheme being perpetrated on the Citizens of this Great Nation.

Live Free or Die!!!! Happy Trails, and God Bless America!! And Please Hurry!!!

Read my commentaries on this article. It is lengthy, but if you take the time to read it, you will better understand the mood of Mainstream America and The Tea Party Movement. We are hardworking, tax paying citizens who are fed up with Supporting this Worthless Government who Treats us Like Dirt and Demonize Us when we ask them to be responsible, responsive and to represent the best interests of We, The People and of this nation.

greyhawk1, maybe it's your odd overuse of capitalization, but the Unibomber-esque rant above is truly disturbing. Are the teabaggers a political movement or cult? It's like you're channeling Tim McVeigh. Scary stuff. The tragic/humorous (depending on your perspective) irony is you will siphon votes from the Republican party, increasing the power of the Democrats. Look at the elections of 2000 if you want a lesson in how a fringe 3rd party candidate can change the course of an election...

hophead,they are a bunch of angry, frightened people living on modest incomes who are afraid someone is going to make their lives worse or try to take a little of what they have. They oppose applying the constitution to all people equally. They are confederates who will not prevail.

palin had to go to 3 colleges as she kept failing out and then finished with a c- average, she shouldn't be allowed to be a manager at walmart more less president.

Glad to hear a "movement" is building,........ a good dose of EX-LAX should help your real agenda .............

greyhawk1- That is the best comment I have ever read. You could not have spelled out the problem any better. Will you please run for president? Signed, Concerned Maine Patriot.

I love it, when liberals protest it's patriotic... when conservatives protest it's hateful... it's too bad that this group had momentum years ago, maybe a little fiscal conservatism wouldn't have a been a bad thing. I noticed that the reduction in the federal deficit will get smaller over the next 6 years according to our federal leadership, so brace yourself- we'll still be piling trillions onto the tab... Big debt, no worries...

If the fundie element could be removed from the whole movement, there'd be something worth getting excited about.

As fundie and conservative all too often go hand in hand in this country... notsomuch.

ZZzzzzzzzzz....socially irresponsible, uneducated, racists.

greyhawk: Did you learn capitalization at your bible school or was that homeschooled into you?

cjnemo...Now why would anyone who has paid into soc security and medicare not want to collect when it comes their time? This system also helps those who are disabled and those who have been unable to be employed because of disabilities.What a stupid statement to say one will see who forsakes receiving what they have paid into for porbably many years. You don't just get soc sec and medicare because you want to. You get it when you reach a certain age or you are disabled and can't work. And even then, you are still going to pay for medicare. It is taken from your soc sec payment each month.It isn't a handout, most working people have paid for the benefit through many years of working.

1:18 PM, SLM414: Why not get past the presentation and hear the message?

J.D. 2008: Where was this uprising for the last eight years? Perhaps silent as long as we kept the Muslims in Gitmo and kept dropping bombs on them while the Cheney war machine stole your treasury and borrowed it back from China. When a black man enters office all of a sudden we see pictures at tea party rallys of him with a bone through his nose, pictures of gassed jews piled up, go back to Africa signs and ruthless mob mentality at every public display. Having Tancredo as a keynote speaker seals the deal. Having a mentor as the ex governor who QUIT her job in order to get paid one hundred grand to repeat the same cynical one liners is a dead givaway.Confederates indeed; name calling as name calling begs.Same as it ever was on the fringe and the Repubics are courting it while claiming to be good Americans. They are not.

I just started reading greyhawk1's post. Yawwwwwnnnn! Sure. MOre VOM-it crap. LIars lying for liars. None of which benefits the American People, just the very wealthy that beat the drum these idjits march to. It's so easy to butcher your post. "No concept of the monetary system." HA! What presidency took us off the gold standard? Look it up. Where's the gold? Bush's answer to a down economy was to PRINT MORE FUNNY MONEY. Don't think so, huh? When Bush took office the first time, after Clinton cleaqned up some of the prior mess (whether you like it or not), the treasury went from one, 8 hour shift at the mint(s) to THREE eight hour shifts. Printing FUNNY MONEY 24/7. All the cash of the early nineties??? FUNNY MONEY. Go ahead. Look it up. It's BOTH parties raping America, yet parrots like you will squawk their lies until the cows come home.

Interesting discussion. But an observation of the comments from the left: No one is defending Obama as being a good President. Strange that no one is taking up for him, just doing their best to tear down Palin. Come on, lefties, build up your messiah and try and convince us that he's got what it takes to lead this country. So far, he hasn't proven a thing on his own behalf. Maybe his blind followers can come up with something substantial.

Whoever Sarah is for, I'm for!

As vocalized by Lloyd Marcus at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZkvkLmkYVg

it's time for us to take back our USA before the extreme liberals destroy it 100%!

In addition, if you care about our country's future, please get active and stay in touch with reality at sites like http://paintmainered.com, www.asmainegoes.com and www.mainetaxpayers.com

From the 2010 National Tea Party Convention:

1. Hear Sarah Palin’s Keynote Speech @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7gVp3diPbI

2. List to Joseph Farah’s speech about Tea Party movement issues @ http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/id/219195

Give President Obama a little bit of time EJ Parsons it will take awhile to clean up the mess that the Bush administration left behind.

On 2/6/10 at 7:41 AM, BillORight wrote:

It's hard to find solid ground to argue against your post.

On 2/6/10 at 10:55 AM, JoeDoe wrote: Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

If Sarah Palin is such a joke to the media, then why are they sequestering all of her emails and sifting through them to find dirt to discredit her. the media is showing us who our candidate should be, or someone like her. They are terrified of this woman.

Terrified of a person that puts 'crib notes' on the palm of her hand while at the same time vilifying President Obama for using a teleprompter after every President since its invention had used one. Please.

I find it totally amazing how two women put fear into opposing sides. Hillary and Palin. You go girls!..lol

Democrats keep telling yourselves its a right wing Republican movement. HeHe. Obama, Bush, 2 peas in a pod. Both National Socialists. Hitler would feel vindicated.

wonderingwhy - 3:10 PM - Obama will still be blaming Bush in 2012 when he goes for re-election. He's not strong enough to take the reigns, and he doesn't have enough experience to do the job he was elected to do. He's just a community organizer. And that explains it all. By the way, up until the last 2 years of the Bush administration, people were applauding his handling of the economy and war. Funny how things change just because the Dems took Congress for his last 2 years in office. Oh, did you forget that? Congress does control the purse strings....not the president. Maybe they deserve some of the blame, too.

I've always been leary of popular movements. KKK, American Nazis The +way

They come and go leaving carnage in their wake. then those folks who decide elections (middle-of-roaders) are forced to step in and clean up the mess.

Come on folks, Lou Dobbs is a narcissist A self aggrandizing corporate shill who cares nothing for anyone but himself. The others behind this movement, are equally self-absorbed.

Find some backbone. Use your own voice. What the hell is a "ditto-head" anyway.

The teabag movement will not last long. With the likes of EJ Parsons, the movement will not go far due to the lack of education and inability to get past their own double standards.

You go Harry III. The far right is a nauseating pack of liars leading a monstrous flock of intellectually bankrupt parrots and the far left is dragging us closer and closer to paying more than half our income in taxes. Let's see, give it away to the wealthy or just give it straight to the government. A true Hobson's choice. Sarah Palin. Oh . . . my . . . god! Obama isn't qualified as president, but Palin will have her #9 pump in her mouth at every turn.

What I don't understand, that all the people who are so against people speaking out and being peacefully active in the politicial movement are so quick to take the Pelosi stance that it is okay to speak out...as long as it is for your ideas. What the die hard libs and the MSNBC's of the media don't quite want to admit, is that people involved and taking a stand, aren't just die hard republicans.What they don't want to admit and even fear, is that many independants who usually swing left aren't still blaming just Bush. They know that spending like drunks isn't going to make things better. They know the liberal movement is worse for this country when left unchecked. What the libs and the media aren't admitting is that many many aren't being conned anymore and are realizing the dems were worse than the repubs when given their chance to show what they could do. Some lib pundits are trying to deflect what is fast becoming a revulsion of progressive/liberal views by saying something that is more to the truth than anything else. The people aren't going against EVERY dem...they are going to be looking at repubs just as much. Independants know they were lied to and being the swing vote in this country, they are not looking to party anymore and are going to hold people accountable for their stances.The people have seen the "change" they voted for. They seen it through the bribes for votes, the back door deals for special interests, the special deals for unions, the type of administration surrounding the pres. People are finally speaking out and now are being criticized for it. Now that palin spoke at some convention, these people are being seen as palin supporters and it makes them less of a movement? I suppose when wm ayers speaks out, you all sit right up and listen and that is just fine? Every politician, dem and repub should be taking notice. If Va, NJ and more closer to home, Massachusetts isn't sending a message, then you folks who think this is a joke will be waking up in Nov and saying what hit us?

take our govt back. go vote.this is great

It looks like this story has about run its course for now. But this has been too much fun not to continue. Sarah Palin continues to make news and, yes, the prospect of her being a heart beat away from the Presidency or, worse, having the heartbeat of the President is frightening. It would be like having brain surgery and having the doctor introduce himself with "Hello, I'm Dr. Goofy. I'm here to operate on your brain. Aw, shucks, Mickey, do I use the chisel or the hacksaw? Hee-hee." Her speech at the Tea Party convention was delivered very well, for a high school student somewhat new to the drama club, sarcastic and filled with homey-isms. She seems to have learned her diction from watching the movie Fargo. Pick it up sometime and watch the scene where the police are interviewing a couple of young Minnesota girls about the bad guys whom they encountered the night before. Listen to how one of the young women describes the activities of "the little fella." Oh well, the pot boils. The Super Bowl has been good, but politics is really America's favorite sport.

And one more thing; I like to think that the President of the United States is actually smart. I know I'm not smart enough to be President, but I still think that I could go 'mano a mano' with Sarah Palin on Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader, and I would like my chances.

Q. What is more frightening to the left than tea party followers gathered on the town square? A. Tea party followers in the voting booths! Try to make your hateful words a little "sweeter" tea party nay sayers. You may have to eat them come November!!

Sarah Palin is the Democratic Party's best friend, because if she is nominated to run against Obama they are guaranteed another 4 years. That chick is a radical lunatic and an absolute idiot. I wouldn't vote for her if someone paid me a million dollars, lol. I would have voted for McCain if he hadn't chosen her as a running mate. I voted for Obama to vote AGAINST Palin. I'm a registered Independent who votes for the least radical ticket for president and then the least radical individual candidates. I can't stand nut jobs, regardless of which party they belong to and Palin is a nut job.

The Tea Party Patriots are calling for the violent overthrow of the currently democratically elected government of the United States. While this is Sedition and nothing but Sedition and these people want a government that benefits them and nobody else, I agree with them and the Fox News Organization, it is an idea whose time has come. The U.S. should be broken up as Fox and the Tea Party Patriots are proposing. It will be primarily in the form of a Red State – Blue State solution. The only thing that I disagree with is that the actual Tea Party and their Fox News lackeys should be allowed to stay in a Blue State. Just as the Tories of 1784 found themselves dismantling they’re homes in Castine and moving them to St. Andrews and St. Stephens, New Brunswick, Tea Party Patriots should expect to be expelled to Red States from Blue States. This can be conducted by the last democratic act of the expiring United States they so dearly wish to see. The break-up they have been screaming for ever since they lost the 2008 election is long overdue and those Tea State Patriots that are uncomfortable with democracy and the funding of it should just go create their own form of government in a Red State.

Uh-huh.......Bilgerat please provide the quotes, video or any other sourcing you might have to support your claim that "Tea Party Patriots are calling for the violent overthrow of the currently democratically elected government of the United States".

Uh-huh.......Bilgerat please provide the quotes, video or any other sourcing you might have to support your claim that "Tea Party Patriots are calling for the violent overthrow of the currently democratically elected government of the United States".

Once the health care lobby and big energy gets the Tea Party to do it's bidding, the money will dry up and the Tea Party will go away. No one really believes that the Constitution has anything to do with protecting healthcare and big pharma profits, but when people like Dick Armey pull the strings those are the kind of bogus issues that come up. Obama got his birth certificate from Elvis at the ET grocery store where he's working as a check-out clerk. Keep busy on that while we get the rest of your money. Where was the Tea Party when the "Patriot Act" was passed? The rich white male land-owners who wrote the constitution: "Of the rich white male land-owners, by the rich white male land-owners and for the rich white male land-owners..." had no idea what America would be dealing with 235 years later. By creating a system where the Senate and the executive branch hold power over any kind of representational democracy, they paved the way for rule of whoever has the most money, and whoever is willing to sell out for the most money. It's amazing that people read so much into the constitution, and even more amazing that people would bring God into this, because obviously God doesn't have a dog in this hunt. The Rich white male land-owners were quite clear about that, but that's the part of the constitution the Tea Party decides to ignore.

tarheel from reading your comment it appears that you may have either never read the U.S. Constitution or are relying on others to tell you what it says.

"Of the rich white male land-owners, by the rich white male land-owners and for the rich white male land-owners..." do you know who the framers really were? Farmers, lawyers, ministers, plantation owers, business owners, etc... Rich? Hardly, many died in poverty. Jefferson sold his library to pay debts.

"By creating a system where the Senate and the executive branch hold power over any kind of representational democracy..." Really? Did you some how forget about the House and the Judicary. The Legislative, Executive and Judical Branches of the federal government all hold EQUAL power. No one branch is more powerful than the other.

"representational democracy"? No. Representative Republic Yes.

I am always amazed at what people (citizens) think the U.S. Constitution really says vs. what it truly says.

Republicans, "tea-baggers" and their ilk, are all anti-Obama. Have been since he announced his candidacy, and been on a constant attack since. Not one issue aired has drawn any constructive criticism, or, a desire to discuss any issue. Instead, we are barraged daily by insidious swipes, sound bites and photo ops all from the repubican Red machine - the divisive scythe - which has cut the biggest gulf between American that ever existed. For a solid year they have done nothing but attack, snap, bite, at anything coming out of the White House. The "bi-partianship" joke falls flat like a empty glove whenever McConnell, Boehner, or Collins and Snowe make it an issue in their inability to communicate, or, mix with the other side. Such was their contempt for the president, during the State of Union address, they all sat on their hands and did their best ot ignore him. The Tea Party gimmick pattened after the Boston Tea Party, but now only using tea bags instead of the real McCoy, only enlarges this contempt issue, as do the town meetings patronized by gun slingers claiming like Glenn Beck that they must take their country back. Well, it's just as bad as the 60s.

If anyone has a better way to solve the current mess we're in, why not step up to the plate and lead the way. If any Tea Bagger, Town Meeting gun slinger, knows how to cut the deficit, get out of Iraq and Afghanistant, solve the unemployment mess, stop bankers from taking huge bonuses, help people get a better deal for their dollar that buys their prescriptions, fend off terrorism - then give your Congressional reps a shove. Obama has had one year to accomplish all of this. But the Tea Baggers and their ilk believe it could have all been solved within the first six months. So - let's see you do somethig constructive instead of dunking tea bags and crying like spoiled brats.

Tea Partiers. 1. You aren't Patriots. 2. You don't understand the Constitution. 3. You have no ideas. 4 You have no movement.

Split between birthers (racists) and economic anarchists the tea partiers will split the Republican Party and support mindless, inexperienced, extremists like Hoffman in NY-23 who will further isolate and weaken the Republican Party. The Republicans deserve it. They have been selling this false ideology for 30 years. In the last 8 they proved the ideology false and their utter contempt for middle class and working America. Now they have no credibility and are open to take over by the monty python right.

Sorry I missed Bilgerat's comments before posting.

This Tea Bagger revolt should be called what it is - as described by its patron C-In-C Fox's Glenn Beck and his aide-de-camp Sean Hannity - a sneaky lead in to a violent attempt to overthow the government.

Some of the tea dunkers may not even be aware of this and are just dunking because of their distaste for the president. Like Bilgerat said, this boil has been festering ever since the republicans lost the 2008 election.

Denmocrats need to rally and repel these insurgents at the ballot box, in the media, in the coffee shops, and whenever they see a tea bag being treated so unceremoniously.

JD2008,

Go back and read it again, lawyers, who did they represent - rich white land-owners, ministers, who did they get their build funds from - rich white land-owners, farmers - in the south rich white slave owners. The Constitution was a compromise between rich white slave owners and rich white merchants, lawyers and farmers some slave owners in the North.

Using Jefferson as your example is very accurate for Tea Partiers. He was a slave owner and abuser. He was an despicable politician who attacked his enemies through third parties so he would not be accountable for the attack and among other things his library was sold after his death because he is the symbol of personal financial irresponsibility. They had to sell his library because Jefferson engaged in an orgy of spending to satisfy his lust for books, furniture, art, on and on.

Tea Partier are not the mainstream of America. They aren't even the mainstream of the Republican Party. They are mainstream nothing. Just extremists with very bad extreme ideas.

JonAlbrecht..I could have just as easily have used Adams, Franklin, Madison, Hopkins, Rutledge, Lee, etc...in any of my examples.

Our Founding Fathers risked the hangman's knot for what they did. They were far from "rich". The vast majority of this country would not have the courage today to do what the founding fathers did in 1776. The

TopSail...I asked this question earlier and the poster never provided the background to support their claim. Maybe you can do better. Could you please provide the source, video, etc that supports your claim "a violent attempt to overthow the government." I have heard no one say that, I have not read any position papers stating that. I have seen no video that supports your claim. So, please post your source.

If the Tea Party movement and Sarah Palin are so unworthy by the left, then why are they so afraid of them? It's just like discussing Jesus as the only Way to eternal life. The ungodly and immoral left are unable to see the truth in anything, so they turn to hatred, slander, and deceit to push their points. The left is unable to see things for what they really are. I can understand why they support the present administration.

JD - You know as well as I do that there is no violent attempt being perpetrated by the Tea Party. It's just another falsehood in the campaign of lies from the left. They haven't a clue what's really going on in the Tea Party. They only take their marching orders from Olbermann and Maddow, their hate-mongers-in-chief.

Before repeating many of the fasehoods claimed by both the Right and the Left (but more on the Right), check the facts.

http://www.factcheck.org/2009/12/whoppers-of-2009/

Peeps love Nascar, Redneck comedy, Allens coffee brandy and McDonalds hamburgers. These same people could get Sarah Palin elected, she's one of them. My question is why do parents brag about their kids being so smart, but when a poltician is very smart, he/she is labeled an "elitist" and vilified. Look around Mainers, sad but true most of us are dummies. Dummies are easliy led, and there are more of them than intelligent folks, we are all doomed.

I'd share a bottle of Allen's with Sarah!

spasmoweeder...a person doesn't have to be all that intelligent to recognize that Palin is a nutjob. Sorry, but any politician who supports billing women who have been raped for getting a rape kit done and who goes to rallies and conventions of radical groups started by domestic terrorists just aren't going to have much luck with REAL patriots or women. Intelligent Republicans and Conservatives can't stand Palin. It's just the guys that are really completely clueless about politics and just mimic what they hear the radical right pundits say who like Palin...and they only like her because she's pretty and being able to vote for her is the closest they'll ever get to sleeping with her. It's kinda sad, actually, lol.

4:44 PM, Centaurmyst,

Don't forget her anointment by an African "witch hunter"...

That has to qualify for some form of mental instability.

Sarah Palin is a FRAUD. A Trojan Horse, designed to destroy the Conservative movement. The tea party movement started out as a revolt against make believe Republicans/conservatives so the establishment had to get control. Don't be fooled. More at: http://www.infowars.com/tea-party-sarah-is-a-neocon/

yes, tedlick...gotta love a chick who also cozies up to a religious zealot that incites entire African villages to terrorize little old tribal women. Palin is a very special kind of crazy. :p

Ever notice how everyone wants to be a comedian?

Just because I call Palin a joke doesn't mean I'm afraid of her. I keep hearing that from posters, but it's far from the truth. I actually welcome her third party candidacy because it would be a disaster for the Republicans. And if Glenn Beck is the tea bag poster boy, it just confirms my thoughts about the group. That guy is a raving lunatic! Makes Rush seem sensible!LOL

Centaurmyst I always chuckle when folks try to marginalize a movement they do not agree with by using labels like; "radical groups", "domestic terrorists". Please or Please enlighten us all by showing us what it is about the Tea Party movement that makes them a "radical group" and/or "domestic terrorists".

Now just to be clear, I would like clear examples of what they have said, done, said they will do or have told people to do that makes them a "radical group" and/or a "domestic terrorists".

This is the third time I have asked this question and no one to date has been able to pony up the evidence. Come on Centaurmyst I await you documentation of your claims.

Obama has little experience, Palin has "Alaska" experience If you need to find out what drives Alaska Pols, you must read "Who owns Alaska" by their former independent governor Walter Hickle. Palin's husband is part of the described Alaska separatist movement. I don't know how someone who wants to split off a large section of US territory for the sole purpose of increasing personal wealth can be considered a patriot.

Now I actually kinda like Glen Beck, even though I don't always agree with him. I like him because his views aren't ones he just picked up listening to Bill O'Reilly or Rush Limbaugh. He actually reads up on things and forms his own opinion. I agree with him on some things and think he's dead wrong on others. Regarding fearing Palin...I don't fear her ever being elected because that will never happen. She's the conservative's version of Dennis Kucinich...too far to one extreme to ever be able to appeal to the middle. Now what DOES terrify me is the idea of her in any office of power on a national level. She's very radical in her beliefs and she appeals most to the lowest common denominator of American humanity. It would be kinda like making Iran's president Prime Minister of Israel...tragic and nonsensical.

JD...I'm not talking about the tea party movement. I'm talking about Palin's associations in Alaska. Keep in mind that I am an Independent. I have NEVER voted for someone based on their party. The woman is honestly a whack job. If she weren't so bloody stupid in combination with being attractive the media would spend more time talking about all the important (and disturbing!) information about Palin. Now I think all that nonsense about her pretending that her daughter's kid is hers is ridiculous. However...there ARE some VERY unsettling things about Palin's behavior in power and her associations. You really should look into it.

Centaurmyst one could not discern from your 4:44 PM post that you were not talking about the Tea Party movement. I was not defending Sarah Palin but looking for someone to provide the documentation to backup the claims they were making.

Well, I'm guessing that anyone alluding to Palin and terrorist, anti-american groups are referring to Joseph Volger and the Alaskan Independence Party. Vogler was the founder of the AIP who was extremely anti-american. He died while purchasing illegal plastic explosives just before Iran was going to host him to make an anti-American speech at the United Nations. Palin's husband was a member of the AIP and she not only went to their events and was very friendly to high ranking members she also kept appointing these anti-American secessionist radicals to governmental positions of power. The chick is BAD news in ANY position of power for many reasons, and this is one of the biggest reasons why so many Americans voted for Obama over McCain. Palin is a fruit loop!

Palin has the mind of a second grader. She is still putting cheat notes on the palms of her hands. Talk about a total MORON.

Where were the tea blabbers when Bush was working on one of the biggest deficits the country has known?

A black man is elected president and they're out in force. Every day, each minute, Beck and his loyal followers whip up the masses into wearing tea bags on their hats and chanting that they are going to "Take back" their country.

Each day since his inaugeration, this president has been viciously attacked by republicans. The November elections never ended. Each day is an election day. The tea bag attack unit, Beck and his cohorts, gun toting watchers of the town meetings.

Outrage every day. Sptting and castigating a man who was elected by the majority in 2008, now has to justify each day his right to be president. Even his origin of birth is still being attacked by Dobbs and other

I voted for Obama and will vote again for him. Your attacks on this man the majority elected are an attack on us. We too are Ameruicans and if you don't respect the right of fellow Americans and their choice, tough.

The protests in Washington and other places against this president make Iran and Iraq look tame.

TopSail - "The protests in Washington and other places against this president make Iran and Iraq look tame." That statement alone blows any creditablility you might desire. Even MSNBC hasn't made that rediculous insinuation.

For people who rely on Hannity and Limbaugh for their facts, what do you expect? Hysterics when the truth hits them. Hannity chortled over the "fact" that the second tea bag dunking was even larger than the first. He even admitted spliciing footage from the larger first assembly onto the second shoot, just to punmp up the numbers. Then, he weakly apologized. Each day, Hannity, Limbaugh, Rove, Pino, Cheney, Coulter, Krupthammer, and the Tea Baggers continue their year-long upset over having lost the election. Nuts to facts, just attack. They cannot and will not accept a black presdent. I do not watch or listen to these people. Their names and their insinuations are picked up by what I thought was the regular media. Today, Limbaugh accuses a a Maine farmer of being a socialist, according to a BDN editorial. He's even got agreement here in Maine. Rediculous? Stupidity!