Response to Post #2
Please post your response to post 1 here. Please be specific in your praise or criticism of your classmate's post. Please state who you are responding to.
Due by Friday, October 1st.
posted by M. Aby @ 1:18 PM
AP US Government & Politics
This blog is for students in Ms. Aby-Keirstead's AP US Government class in Bloomington, MN. It is for students to post their thoughts on current events and governmental affairs. Students should be respectful & think of this forum as an extension of their classroom. The instructor has the same expectations for classroom discussion & blog posts. These posts will be graded for both their academic merit & for their appropriateness.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Due by Friday, October 1st.
AP US Government & Politics
This blog is for students in Ms. Aby-Keirstead's AP US Government class in Bloomington, MN. It is for students to post their thoughts on current events and governmental affairs. Students should be respectful & think of this forum as an extension of their classroom. The instructor has the same expectations for classroom discussion & blog posts. These posts will be graded for both their academic merit & for their appropriateness.
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- Response to Post #1
- Feedback from post #1
- Tea Party - Post #2
- Response to Post #1
- 2010 Midterm Elections
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26 Comments:
In response to Lexi:
I thought you did a good job of summarizing how the Tea Party arose, however your foundations of the Tea Party differ from what I found in my research. You stated that the Tea Party's main issues are "the need for a strong military, government to be downsized, a national budget to be balanced, intrusive government to be halted, and reducing personal and business income taxes". I found there ideals to be more narrow and just including lower taxes and limited government (1) (Source from EmmaBee). I really liked your comment that "The Tea Party wishes to educate the people on their core values of Fiscal Responsibility, Free Markets, and Constitutionally Limited Government" (2). In many instances people get so wound up over the people that are part of a group that they forget that all the Tea Party is, is an interest group (or some would argue a small to midsize party) that wants to educate the people. Thanks for reminding us of this! : ]
I also agree with you that the rise of the Tea Party could increase voter turnout for the election in November. People are more likely to vote if they feel really strongly for one issue or another, so if someone is really passionate either for or against a Tea Party member they will be more likely to vote. But, as you pointed out, I think it will be difficult for the Tea Party to gain many seats since they are mostly known for a being a radical right-wing group.
Overall, I think you did a really good job. One of my only criticisms of your post is that you had limited analysis of the races that you mentioned. It would have been helpful as a reader to know more about the individual races, and the impact that they are having on the general election.
Nice Work. Snaps for Lexi. : ]
(1)http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/opinion/19dowd.html?_r=2&ref=tea_party_movement
(2)http://www.teapartypatriots.org/Mission.aspx
In response to Caitlin:
I have to agree with what Caitlin said about if many Tea Party candidates were elected this fall, it would cause a massive change to how things are now. One reason is because Tea Party members are greatly unhappy about what is happening in the U.S. government right now. I also like how Caitlin said that “Tea Party elected officials would almost surely oppose much of the agenda of President Obama.” I expect that this will cause many problems, and anything the President offers will hardly ever get through.
Another aspect of Caitlin’s blog post that I liked was how she pointed out that, mostly, Democrats and members of the media are calling the Tea Party “racists, bigots, and extremists.” It truly shows how the public views the Tea Party.
She also points out how because of the Tea Party they are also affecting the chances of the Republican Party winning. Since they are very similar to the Republican Party and many of its members consider themselves as conservative the Tea Party candidates are starting to take the over the Republican Party’s candidate. This is splitting the conservative vote. But I also agree with how she adds that the Tea Party is actually helping the Republicans because they are gaining a wide support for anything conservative, therefore helping them.
Responding to Abby R.
Throughout Abby’s post, there were parts I found that I agreed with and disagreed with. The Tea Party is a movement that generally associates itself with the Republican Party. Members are generally unhappy with the Obama Administration, and they are concerned with severely lowering the scope of government. Although she stated that members don’t like Obama because of his race, I think that in general that is untrue. Polls suggest that people aren’t at all concerned with the color of his skin, but rather his policies (1).
Abby stated, “The Tea Party played a much bigger role than many people were expecting in the primaries, achieving huge upsets and gaining more popularity and awareness from the American people.” I don’t agree with this. Rather, I would say the Republican Party played a much bigger role in the primaries. Contrary to what I think many people believe the Tea Party is not the Republican Party. Many members of the Republican Party are Tea Party members, but they are by no means the same thing. That is not to say the Tea Party didn’t have a good turn out in the primaries- Christine O’Donnell of Delaware is a prime example of such triumph- but I would say the Republican Party did better in the primaries than specifically the Tea Party.
I do absolutely agree that the Tea Party will have a poor turn out in the primaries. With much of American upset with the Obama Administration, the Republican Party has a fairly good chance of winning in at lease one house, but The Tea Party might ruin that chance by splitting the party in half. Fox news Correspondent, Karl Rove, stated, when asked whether the Tea Party will split the Republicans, “we were looking at eight to nine seats in the Senate. We’re now looking at seven to eight” (2). I believe that some people would still see that as a high estimate.
I also think it is worthwhile to note some of the statistics discussed in the class polling activity. The majority of the statistics in the packet showed that most people either did not know or did not care about the Tea Party Movement. So, although The Tea Party seems to have been making big news lately, it appears that most Americans don’t have a preference about it, leading me to further agree with Abby’s comment regarding the Tea Party in the election. I also agree that if Tea Party Members are to be elected to Congress, there will be extreme difficulty in getting anything done, especially if the Republican Party doesn’t gain the majority in either house.
All in all, Abby did a good job discussing the Tea Party. She made excellent observations some strong points.
(1) http://abcnews.go.com/WN/Obama/racism-obamas-america-year/story?id=9638178
(2) http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129901256
When I said I agreed that the Tea Party will do poorly in the primaries, I meant the mid term elections! My bad :)
In response to Bridget (bmac)
Bridget stated that if the Tea Party got elected to Congress, there would be no measurable change for Republicans and Democrats. I disagree with this fact. When radical powers like the Tea Party come to hold power, people are bound to shuffle for the spin that makes their party look good. I agree with what Lexi pointed out, she said that Republican and Democrat ratings are dropping and these primaries showed the first step in this undertaking of American dissatisfaction with the typical party roles. Both parties are going to have to establish new political niches and let them be known to the public. If the Tea Party is elected in these coming days, I find it unlikely that little change will occur with the shuffling of Republicans and Democrats, and equally unlikely that any strong new reform will be passed. A form of gridlock is bound to happen and unless moderate conservatives are swayed to the Tea Party’s agenda, I don’t think the party will obtain the supermajority to overcome the Democrats. I noticed that Bridget didn’t have any sources for this last question so it leads me to believe that she’s extrapolating her conjectures from experience. From Reuters, Van Hollen said that moderate Republicans will be increasing their efforts of obstruction which leads to my hypothesis of gridlock instead of change (1). Even though I disagree with some of the points that were made, I think the overall content had strong factual backing and it was well written.
1) http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE68L5RQ20100922
In response to Patrick Au:
I just wanted to say Patrick that I think you did a really nice job on this week’s post. It was very clear and precise. I have to agree with you that the Tea Party is an interest group that leans more towards the conservative party, even though they have view points from both sides of the spectrum. I like when you discussed which issues were liberal and which issues were conservative, for example, when you said that their view on abortion is liberal, and that their view on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, was a conservative view.
I do however disagree with you when you say that they didn’t have a significant role on the primaries. I feel that they had a major influence on the primaries because they split some of the independents to lean towards Democrats and also some of the people that are a part of the Republican Party are upset that there is this movement. (1)
I also agree with you that if people who represent themselves with the Tea Party get elected into Congress, it will hurt the Democrats. I believe with this statement because since people who associate with the Tea Party are more Republican, they will-more than likely- vote for the Republican views.
Patrick Au, I wanted to say that I believe almost everything that you had to say because to me is seems very ethical and logical. You did a great job!
DR. BRIAN THE BLOGGER.
Sources
(1)http://www.theatlanticwire.com/opinions/view/opinion/Primary-Tuesday-Calculating-the-Tea-Party-Effect-3622
In response to Amanda:
I thought you did an awesome job describing the Tea Party and predicting the effect it will have in the general elections. I agree that the Tea Party is very conservative and wants to limit the role of government in America. I think it is important that you mentioned that there is technically no one leader of the Tea Party, especially because Sarah Palin is widely recognized as being the leader in the media. I can't see how the Tea Party could make the argument that they could appeal to Democrats because they have completely opposite views: For example, the Tea Party's major focus is to limit the role of government in the American economy while a major belief of the Democrats is that the government should play a role in regulating the economy.
I also agree with you about the role the Tea Party will play in the future. Although the Tea Party had a surprisingly good turn out in the primaries, it will end up hurting conservatives in the general elections. Because the Tea Party is so extremely conservative, it will deter many moderate voters who would have voted for a GOP-endorsed Republican candidates and now they will likely vote for the Democrat candidate. I agree that this will seriously hinder the Republican party's once reasonable goal of winning a majority of the Senate seats. I think you are right when you said that the only role the Tea Party can really have in the general elections is that they will take away votes from the Republican party and I think that they will most likely cause the Democrats to retain their majorities in both the House and Senate. I also agree that the Tea Party could cause problems for the Republican party if they are elected into office. Overall, great job on your post!
Response to Brian (Dr. Brian the Blogger):
I unfortunately have to say that I disagree with a large amount of your post. The major thing that strikes me is that, while you could definitely say the Tea Party is not a part of the mainstream Republican party, they are certainly not between the two big parties. The Tea Party defines themselves on their conservative views, such as the importance of tax cuts (1), their desire to repeal the new health care reform (1), and their views on illegal immigrants (2). Perhaps the strongest support of this idea is an example you yourself used: Republicans are, by an enormous margin, pro-life when it comes to abortion (3).
When you discuss the primary elections and what role the Tea Party plays in them, you mention: “The Tea Party doesn’t play that big of a role in primary elections because there isn’t that big of a voter turnout anyways, and the people that come out to vote during the primaries are either strong right or strong left.” This is precisely why they play such a big role. Once we agree that the Tea Party represents a strong right group, the fact that strong right people are the ones who mostly show up at primaries becomes extremely relevant; the strong right voters of the primaries have and will elect Tea Party candidates, which will end up crippling the Republican party in the upcoming midterm elections.
Lastly, I disagree with the notion that Tea Party members being elected would hurt the Republican party in any way when it comes to their effectiveness in Congress, but it again comes back to the fact that they are a far right movement and not a central one, which I think I’ve probably talked too much about already, so I will leave that at that.
All that said, though, the post itself was well written.
1. http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/tea-party-activists-unveil-contract-america/story?id=10376437&page=1
2. http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/politics/racial-slur-by-tea-party-leader-hits-home-647303.html
3. http://www.gallup.com/poll/118399/more-americans-pro-life-than-pro-choice-first-time.aspx
In Response to Brian aka Dr. Brian the Blogger
I thought your post was great on how you were able to point out that the tea party's values are conservative and liberal combined. The Tea party is a lot independent in the way they present their viewpoints. I also do think that tea party won't be able to make a change in this election because the party is made up of democrats and republicans so they will end up reducing votes for both parties but it would be high enough to make a difference. I also agree with you about what you said about tea party being elected. I think it would make democrats and republican parties weaker because it will make it hard for them to give opinion on issues which would end up hard for each parties to get through their political agenda.
I mostly agree on all of your opinions about the tea party and i think you did a great job.
This comment has been removed by the author.
In response to Savannah:
I agree with Savannah when she said, “The Tea Party is also proving that is does have some packed punches.” As I said in my blog post, the Tea Party was represented very well in the primaries. I used the example of Christine O’Donnell, who beat Mike Castle. America was also surprised with Tea Party backed Carl Paladio defeating former congressman Rick Lazio in New York. Americans are learning not to under estimate the power of the Tea Party. I also agree that more competition will arise between the Democrats and the Republicans in the election. In my research, I also found the statement that many Americans aren’t pleased with a few of the issues President Obama has been addressing. More than nine in ten (92 percent) say America is on the wrong track, while just six percent say the country is headed in the right direction.(1.) This will make it difficult for Democrats to obtain House seats. I liked all the support you had in numbers behind your statements in your first paragraph. It gave a good description of the Tea Party. Several statements in your blog mirrored mine. I think that you did an overall great job with description and evidence.
1.http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20002529-503544.html
In response to DR. BRIAN THE BLOGGER,
I have to disagree with some of the points you made in your post. First off, while you were right that the Tea Party started as a response to the policies of the Obama Administration, I think that describing it as "certain laws passed by the government" is a bit too vague. Also, the belief that abortion is wrong and therefore should be illegal is actually a conservative point of view, not liberal. While you are right that the EESA of 2008 is one of the sources of Tea Party anger, it is ironic because this was actually signed into law by President Bush in October 2008, and as we've seen with the Republican minority in Congress, the Republicans have recently had a strong tendency to stick together. This strengthens your argument that the Tea Party is an independent movement instead of a part of the Republican Party, which is a claim I strongly agree with.
I also disagree when you said that the Tea Party wouldn't play a large role in primary elections, because Tea Partiers Christine O'Donnell, Sharron Angle, and Carl Paladino have been very prominent on the political scene in recent weeks (1). Also, because of how polarizing the Tea Party seems to be (most people seem to be strong supporters or strong opponents), I don't see many moderate or Democrat voters leaning towards the Tea Party in November because they are just too conservative to appear to a large base of voters.
(1) http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/09/14/primary.elections/index.html
In response to Emma’s point that, “The Tea Party is not quite a third party, but it is increasing power and influence makes it more of a threat than many other interests groups”
The Tea Party itself is not a third political party, it is a movement comprised of several smaller conservative interest groups. [1] Since it encompasses several interest groups on various issues such as pro-life positions, Healthcare reform, and tax cuts it is not a “threat” but a way for these other interest groups to band together to form a united voice that is beginning to be heard in Washington.
Concerning Emma’s assertion that moderates should be “worried” about this “extremist” group, a poll taken two days ago revealed that 70% of Americans polled support Tea Party values, while 49% of democrats polled also agreed with Tea party values[2]. This doesn’t seem to be a small fringe group of people
Finally, I disagree with Emma’s comment that “The two biggest things they stand for are lower taxes and limited government, which sound good in theory, but they way the Tea Party proposes to do this is what I believe to be cruel. One way they would lower taxes is to cut spending in the welfare area.” Cutting taxes and reducing regulation produces jobs and economic growth. That is far more important in reducing poverty than expanding welfare.
[1] http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1964903,00.html
[2] http://www.gallup.com/poll/143231/Conservatives-Dominate-Republican-Party-Skew-Older.aspx
In Response to RJ:
I thought you did a great job comparing and contrasting the different roles that the Tea Party will take on in November compared to the Primary elections. I agree with you that the Tea Party will transform from a group that won votes by fighting against the establishment to one that will alienate large portions of voters. I think you are right on that Tea Party Success in November would lead to a stoppage in most legislation because of the different political views held by members of Congress. I think we should also look to see what type of affect Tea Party success or failure in November would have on the Presidential Election in 2012.
Your analysis that Republicans are picking the most conservative candidates in Primary elections is great point. A whole other post could be created from looking at this trend. My guess for why Republican voters are doing this goes back to the healthcare debates over the past few years. Democrats did not have enough votes to break a Republican filibuster on the healthcare bill. Democrats convinced some more moderate Republicans and “Blue Dog” Democrats to join their ranks by offering special incentives for those members’ states. I think that the Tea Party is looking to close the ranks of the Republicans so there are no more breaks in the Republican Party.
Overall your blog was very well written and insightful. I think you did a great job explaining each party’s platform and what the possibilities for the November election are. One thing I would work on is trying to write in a less of essay form and more of a casual writing form.
Response to Abby R:
I think you brought up an interesting point when you mentioned that some people think Tea Party members are racist because they are mostly white and disapprove of Obama. Because the Tea Party is a grass-roots movement and it’s views vary from region to region, this may be true in some cases(2). However, my research tended to show that the Tea Party is based on economic goals(1). The fact that they disapprove of Obama relates to his policies rather than his race. I agree that the Tea Party doesn’t want to government to interfere in their everyday lives because limited government is also one of the Tea Party’s core values(1).
I very much agree with you when you said, “Tea Party candidates defeated many GOP-endorsed candidates in the Republican primaries, which I believe is due to the fact that the people with the strongest views usually vote in the primaries and many of the candidates they defeated were very moderate.” I also think that the type of people that vote in primaries have a big effect on the results because only very politically active people vote at primaries so they probably have very strong opinions. The kind of voter that participates in primary elections is more likely than the average citizen to vote for a Tea Party candidate. I also think you are correct when you said that the Tea Party Candidates that won the primaries won’t do very well against the more moderate Democrats. However, the fact that the Tea Party did well in the primaries could point to a shift in public opinion towards more conservative policies(3). This could mean good things for the Republicans who are conservative but not extreme. Because of this, I don’t necessarily agree with you when you say that the Tea Party Candidates give the Democrats the advantage. If a lot of Tea Party members are elected, I also think that there will be a lot of gridlock in Congress. Many of the Tea Party’s views are too conservative for Democrats or Republicans to support, and the Tea Party won’t necessarily side with one particular party to help with a majority(4). They are more independent.
1. Right Pundits http://www.rightpundits.com/?p=6040
2. Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_Party_movement
3. WSWS http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/sep2010/pers-s16.shtml
4. CBS http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/04/05/politics/
In response to Brian's post:
Brian, though I agree with you that the Tea Party is just an interest group trying to express the opinions of its members, I disagree with you about their political orientation. The Tea Party is in fact a conservative movement. In fact, it is assumed that Ron Paul created the Tea Party movement in his race for the Republican nomination for President in 2008, naming his movement after the famous rebellious act, the Boston Tea Party (1). Almost every single stand they take is from a conservative point of view. For example abortion, you said that “they believe that abortion is wrong and that people shouldn’t be able to do that.” For the most part that is a very conservative stand. Conservatives are usually pro-life, believing that all life is sacred, even embryos. While Liberals are pro-choice, giving women the choice to decide whether or not they want an abortion. The Tea Party movement is widely considered a conservative, far-left interest group, and a sub-section of the GOP.
I also believe that the Tea Party has played a bigger role in the Primary elections than you have stated in your blog. Tea Party candidates have been pretty successful in this election's primaries, they won several primaries, a couple times they won seats previously held by more traditional Republicans. It is also estimated that Tea Party candidates will overturn seats held by Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections (1). I think that this shows that they are making a bigger impact on US politics than we might realize.
1.http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5797034/what_is_the_tea_party_movement_pg2.html?cat=9\
Response to Brian:
I liked your post overall, and I agree with you when you said that the Tea Party was not conservative in all their views. The Tea Party is fiscally conservative, which you pointed out by mentioning their disapproval to the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, but they are not necessarily socially conservative. However, I’m not sure you are right about their pro-life view as being liberal. That is usually considered a conservative point of view.
I was surprised that you didn’t think the Tea Party had a very big affect in the primaries. I believe they had a great affect. There were many examples of upsets where another candidate was supposed to win, but the Tea Party activist pulled through. Just a few examples would be Delaware, where Christine O’Donnell beat out the 9-term representative Mike Castle, and in New Hampshire, where Ovide Lamontagne beat Kelly Ayotte(1).
I do not necessarily agree with you when you said that the parties would get weaker if a Tea Party member were to be elected to Congress. In fact, I believe they might even get stronger. Since the Tea Party is associated with the Republican Party, I believe the election of Tea Party members would help the Republicans. Like you said, Brian, some of the Tea Party’s views do seem to go along with public opinion. If Tea Party members came into Congress, and their policies became successful laws, I believe it would greatly help the Republicans. If their ideas don’t work, however, then it would benefit the popularity of the Democrats. So, I do not believe it would make the parties weaker, but just create a greater separation.
Source:
(1) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/14/2010-primary-results-new-york-delaware-new-hampshire_n_715810.html
In response to Dan:
Your blog post was extremely informative and well researched, but I disagreed with some of your thoughts.
When you said, “Although they are definitely a group that is gaining support, the tea party lacks central organization”, it came off it a negative way. I would disagree in the sense that it is [unfortunately] a brilliant move on the Tea Party’s behalf (whether intended or not), to not have one central leader. This protects the group itself from slanderous comments directed at one specific person. By having many people representing the group, the media has not had the chance to delve in completely on one political figure.
Also, when you said, “If tea partiers become a loud enough voice, Democrats will be forced to make changes.”--- I completely disagree because of the extremity of the Tea Party. The Democratic Party in no way will conform to any party of the Tea Party agenda, due to their extreme opposing viewpoints (1). Also, only about 19% of Americans truly have voiced their support for the Tea Party (1).
I think the down-playing of the dislike between the Democrats and Tea Party members could have been amped up more in your blog, along with the sense of power you awarded to the Tea Party. But overall, nice job Danny!
(1) http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/weekinreview/19steinhauer.html
This is a response to Brian (Dr. Brian the Blogger):
I don’t agree with Brian when he says that the Tea Party is an entirely independent group. I feel that saying that the Tea Party is a combination of the two parties is not accurate. They are definitely connected with the Republicans at least somewhat. I agree that the Tea Party seems to have some opinions that definitely do not completely mesh with the Republican party’s opinions, but the example of “they believe that abortion is wrong and that people shouldn’t be able to do that. This is a very liberal point of view in my opinion” is an example of a generally conservative view, NOT a liberal one. I do however agree that the Tea Party is basically an incredibly popular interest group.
I also disagree with much of what you said about the primaries. The Tea Party definitely had a big impact, with Tea Party members earning the nomination for a number of seats, including two that have been noted very prominently in the news (Governor of New York, Delaware Senator). I do however feel that they will probably not have much of an effect on the actual elections. I agree that they will most likely take some votes away from each party (more from the Republicans), but not enough to make that much of a difference. Also, I don’t necessarily agree that both parties will become weaker if a Tea Party member is elected to Congress, I think that they will both just have one more group that they have to deal with when passing laws and such.
In response to eSass:
I chose to comment on Erica’s post for a reason: because I know that her and my ideas differ very much. The other day, I did not have a chance to back up my opinions and respect hers. From my position, I do not believe that the Tea Party is an extremist group, while Erica believes that it is very right winged extremist. I was finding it very difficult to communicate with Erica in this regard.
The first thing I would like to comment about on Erica’s blog posting is that I believe Erica presents a somewhat biased blog. I think her diction expresses these beliefs: words or phrases used in her posting included “huge problem,” “crazy,” “surprising wins by the spreading Tea Party movement,” and “The icing on the crazy cake.” However, might I even comment on my own and say that I also am biased. Reading Erica’s posting is huge to me because it shows me how my political views can differ so much from others.
I am so interested to hear your views, and in some aspects I do believe that the Tea Party stands for more extreme ideas. For example, one thing the Tea Party says that it stands for in my article is the non-negotiable belief “Bailout and stimulus plans are illegal.” (1.) the word illegal is an extremely strong word to use here. I must consider this: What would have happened to our economy if the banks would not have been bailed out? True, I generally do not stand for bailouts. However, the economy would have fallen apart if a bailout had not occurred, and there would be little trust in the federal banking system.
However, I believe liberals often are quick to attack members of the Tea Party and all of their supporters (2). After reading your article, I can see how biased the writer is. So I ask that everybody consider the following questions: What is the Tea Party truly representing? How can the Tea Party, as well as other political parties effectively make their point? What is the reasoning behind beliefs?
Also Erica, I don’t agree with you when you say: “Democrats are ignoring the problem now, hoping that the favor will spill into their hands.” I don’t quite think that Democrats are ignoring the Tea Party, rather I think that Democrats just are unsure of how to react to the arrival of the Tea Party. Democrats have been influencing votes and campaigning. Democrats hoping that the favor will spill into their hands sounds quite casual. I believe that Democrats are doing what they can to make this election successful for them. I believe this to be for all political parties. Regardless of political party affiliation, parties are doing what they can this year to succeed.
1.) http://www.teaparty.org/about.php
2.) http://www.slate.com/id/2267685/
In response to Savannah:
I agree with Savannah’s analysis about the rising popularity and influence of the Tea Party; however I do not foresee the Tea Party taking over the House. The Tea Party is gaining supporters among groups that do not favor the Democrats’ economic and social policies, particularly among the working class, who favor tax cuts (1). Even with their rising popularity, I do not think it will be enough to secure the Tea Party enough seats in the House to control the body. The Tea Party is more concerned with influencing policies to produce a less centralized government than electing their own party members, which shows that at the present time, the Tea Party will be content with stirring up debate from the side lines instead of trying to dominate Congress (2). I agree with Savannah’s argument that having members of the Tea Party in the House will hinder some of the Democrat’s agenda, as President Obama and members of the Tea Party can expect an uphill climb for enacting their policies. It is very important that the Democrats not underestimate the Tea Party, as there is the likelihood that members of the Republican and Tea Parties will be elected to the House (4), and therefore provide increasing opposition to the Democrat’s agenda (3). The Democrats need to keep defending their policies, and the Republicans should try to establish some sense of Conservative unity to create a bond between the Republicans and Tea Party to provide a united front against the Democrat’s policies. The Tea Party is gaining support through many of the female leaders such as Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman’s backing of the Tea Party movement and both the Democrats and Republicans should be aware of the rising effects of the Tea Party (5).
1) http://www.themilitant.com/2010/7437/743705.html
2) http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20002529-503544.html
3) http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/120099-clinton-to-dems-dont-underestimate-tea-party-movement
4) http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/sep/22/gop-cash-fills-coffers-of-tea-party-hopefuls/
5) http://politics.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/peter-roff/2010/09/23/the-tea-party-movement-is-a-womens-movement
In a response to Eric Annett:
One of the major things that I disagreed with was your statement that the Tea Party will help the Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections. Although the Tea Party is relatively extreme in their positions on public policy today, I believe that they are an inspiration for many moderate Americans (which the majority of Americans are) to be skeptical about our government, and its fiscal policy specifically.
Then again though, it remains to be seen what the resounding public opinion of the Tea Party is. If one simply does an online news search for “the Tea Party,” the majority of headlines are negative, showing the Tea Party as an extremist and controversial interest group. One might infer that that because mass media's representation of the Tea Party seems to be overall negative, the public would follow suit. However, polls suggest otherwise. A recent Gallup poll found that 30% of Americans identify themselves as supporters of the Tea Party [1]. This statistic has remained consistent throughout the year and exposes the chord that the Tea Party has struck with Americans. This will not help the Democrats, and I think you would agree with me. You contradict yourself in the last paragraph of your post saying that the results of the Tea Party movement will likely result in added anti-Democratic sentiment. If the Tea Party was a legitimate political party, perhaps your original theory would be correct; unfortunately for your statement though, it is not. Tea Party supporters will likely vote Republican in the midterm elections, shifting the Congressional climate in the House and Senate and impeding the Democratic administration's progress.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/143027/Majority-Thinks-GOP-Moved-Right-Obama-Took-Office.aspx [1]
In response to Caitlin:
I thought that you did an excellent job of both describing the Tea Party in your own words as well as giving unbiased information on what the Tea Party is actually about. I thought that you did a better job than a few others (like myself)who added their personal opinions into the general description. You provided me with more insight into what the Tea Party actually stands for.
I definitely agree with you on the fact that the Tea Party isn't an actual party, or an extremist faction. You put it perfectly when you called it "...a loose network of groups and people who generally support smaller government, lower taxes, eliminating government deficits, individual freedoms, and adherence to the United States Constitution." Many people either aren't informed or aren't well informed on what the Tea Party actually stands for; they aren't truly an extremist faction. I believe that they are a part of the Republican Party that was truly not satisfied with they way that government was run and they want to educate others about that topic. However, while the Tea Party may not be extremist, I think you put it a bit lightly overall in terms of what others think about them. You should have just included a small concession about why outsiders think that the Tea Party is extremist. They share many of the same values as Republicans, but many of their values could be classified as more extreme.
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I thought your description of the what the Tea Party is and what its motives are was excellent. Big spending does seem to be the center of the Party's goal, as Rick Santelli's outburst about bailouts is what seems to have started the movement. I like that you acknowledge the "religious morality" behind the Tea Party's motives. This has become increasingly important for them in opposing abortion and gay marriage; it's not their main focus, but definitely an undertone.
I think that saying the Tea Party has shown strength in the primaries is quite the understatement. The Tea Party has dominated the Republican nomination in several states. The fact that many of these candidates beat out Republicans who had been in politics for many years and were expected to win, like Mike Castle in Delaware, is reason for Democrats and moderate Republicans alike to be nervous.
I definitely agree that a Tea Party presence in Congress will cause gridlock in some cases, and completely ridiculous extremist policies being passed in others. However, I think it is highly unlikely that the Tea Party will gain that much power. In the general election, I think that the people's good reason will win out over extreme views, and the more moderate Democratic candidate will win.
In response to Britta,
I mostly agree with what Britta had to say. I especially enjoyed her example of the 1912 presidential election where Taft and Roosevelt split the Democratic party leading to the victory of Republican candidate Wilson. Like Britta I also thought the Tea Party could be a hindrance to the Republican Party because it could divide the party. The Tea Party supports smaller government, lower taxes, and a stricter interpretation of the Constitution. This is similar to what Republicans want only the Tea Party is even more conservative then Republicans so it does nothing to win over undecided moderate voters, it only takes supporters from the Republicans. I don’t agree with Britta when she says that the Tea Party might greatly influencing the 2012 presidential election. I don’t think the Tea Party will last long. It may be somewhat popular now, however, People still don’t know a lot about the Tea Party. People are taking an interest in the tea Party right now, but that’s more out of curiosity than real interest, in my opinion. The people who take part in primary election are the people who are most enthusiastic about politics, and voicing their opinion, but only represent a portion of the population.
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