‘Teabagger’ was an Oxford Word of the Year finalist.
‘Teabagger’ was an Oxford Word of the Year finalist.
In February, when conservatives began protesting against President Obama with tea parties, the Washington Independent’s Dave Weigel photographed a protester carrying a sign that declared, “tea bag the liberal Dems before they tea bag you!!” Soon after, the term “tea bagger” became a ubiquitous and often derogatory handle for right-wing protesters. Now, Mediaite reports that the term “teabagger” was a finalist in consideration to be the New Oxford American Dictionary’s Word of the Year:
In a press release touting “unfriend” as the word of the year, the New Oxford American Dictionary may have unwittingly made a more controversial move than the New Oxford American Dictionary pretty much ever does.
No, it wasn’t another cutesy tech neologism: they included “teabagger” as one of their Word of the Year finalists.
According to the release, they define “teabagger” as “a person who protests President Obama’s tax policies and stimulus package, often through local demonstrations known as ‘Tea Party’ protests (in allusion to the Boston Tea Party of 1773).”
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O’Reilly warns of a coming ‘tax revolt’: ‘Pelosi will be bobbing up and down in the Boston Harbor.’
O’Reilly warns of a coming ‘tax revolt’: ‘Pelosi will be bobbing up and down in the Boston Harbor.’
Glenn Beck had Fox News host Bill O’Reilly on his radio show today to promote their upcoming “Bold & Fresh Tour,” which will take the two right-wing personalities around the country to preach “the truth — straight up, whether you like it or not.” When Beck brought up Dennis Miller’s appearance on the O’Reilly Factor last week — in which Miller warned of a coming “insurrection“– O’Reilly predicted a “tax revolt” that will “get nasty” and end up with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) “bobbing up and down in the Boston Harbor.”
BECK: Last week, I head you say that — you were on with Dennis Miller. … You two were talking about an insurrection coming.
O’REILLY: Tax revolt.
BECK: He used the word insurrection. And not in a comedic way.
O’REILLY: Yeah, tax revolt. I think people, when they figure out how badly they’re going to get hurt in the next few years, there’s going to be a tea party on taxes and its gonna get nasty. Nancy Pelosi’s going to be bobbing up and down in the Boston Harbor.
This statement appeared to be too much for Beck even, who replied, “Uh, I don’t think that’s necessary.” Listen here:
After ‘getting a lot of flack,’ Tea Party protesters rethink burning Periello and Pelosi in effigy.
After ‘getting a lot of flack,’ Tea Party protesters rethink burning Periello and Pelosi in effigy.
On Saturday, the Danville Tea Party in Virginia plans on holding a “Fired Up for Freedom” rally. The group originally boasted that it would be “burning Rep. Tom Perriello and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in effigy in response to the passage of landmark healthcare legislation.” Even after significant media attention and criticism, Tea Party organizer Nigel Coleman vowed on Friday to move forward with their plans. Yesterday, however, Coleman said that those plans are now “up in the air” because the group is afraid of counter-protesters:
But Coleman said Sunday that some members of his group were “uneasy” with the idea of counter-protesters and that people might mistake the TEA Party Patriots for being violent. Coleman compared the event to similar acts of protest in the nation’s history, such as opposition to the Stamp Act of 1765. [...]
“I still would like to do it,” Coleman said, “but it’s still up in the air at this point. We’ve already started stacking firewood and building the effigy …we will have a bonfire. Burning someone in effigy was just gonna be part of it.” [...]
“We were using it as a symbol of how things are similar to that (colonial) period in history,” he said. “Things have gotten out of hand … the more real we get, the more unreal it gets.”
Coleman added that the public reaction to the group’s plans has been “kinda strange.”
"We will not be going forward with the plan,” a crestfallen Coleman told me by phone moments ago. “We had to cancel it. The property owner won’t allow us to do it. The media attention was something that he didn’t want.”Coleman said he was upset that people had gotten the wrong idea about his plan. “I'm disappointed that the story got out of hand and people misinterpreted something we thought would be a little historical lesson,” he said. “They made people believe that we were committing an act of violence,” in a reference to the “liberal blogs.”
Interloper tricks anti-immigration Tea Party audience, begins chants of ‘Columbus go home!’ (UPDATED)
Interloper tricks anti-immigration Tea Party audience, begins chants of ‘Columbus go home!’ (UPDATED)
UPDATE: In another video of the event showing a different angle, it shows that the people joining in Erickson’s chant weren’t the Tea Party protesters, but pro-reform protesters. The Tea Party protesters seemed to have caught onto Erickson’s stunt by this time.
On Saturday, a few dozen anti-immigration activists gathered on the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol for a Tea Party, part of the nationwide effort by Americans for Legal Immigration PAC (ALIPAC). But somehow, one of the counter-protesters, a “concerned citizen from Minneapolis” named “Robert Erickson,” manged to get on the speaking list. His address started with the standard anti-immigrant rhetoric, but then revealed that he was talking about European immigrants. By this time, however, the crowd was in a frenzy and joined him in his chants of “Columbus go home!” and “Europeans out!”:
Let’s send these European immigrants back where they came from! I don’t care if they are Polish, Irish, English, Italian, or Norwegian! European immigrants are responsible for the most violent and heinous crimes in the history of the world, including genocide and slavery! Its time to restore the sovereignty of people native to this land! I want more workplace raids, starting with the big banks downtown.
Christopher Day at DailyKos notes, “The Tea-Baggers seem pretty clueless, and for the most part don’t even seem to realize they have been punk’d.”
Anti-immigration Tea Party activists attempt to distance themselves from neo-Nazis.
Anti-immigration Tea Party activists attempt to distance themselves from neo-Nazis.
On Saturday, approximately 200 people showed up to the anti-immigration “No Amnesty” tea party rally organized by American Citizens United in Phoenix. Many people were holding signs that had phrases such as “America not Amexico.” At one point there was a “tussle” when neo-Nazis showed up and tried to join the event, holding a Hitler banner and waving a Confederate flag with the “Don’t Tread on Me” Tea Party symbol. When a Tea Party activist confronted the group, one of the neo-Nazis pushed him to the ground. “If you assault me, you get assaulted back,” he said as police intervened. Watch it:
The Phoenix rally appeared to be part of a larger nationwide effort by Americans for Legal Immigration PAC (ALIPAC), which organized anti-immigration Tea Parties on Saturday to stop the effort to “destroy America through mass illegal immigration and amnesty.” As Andrea Nill explains in today’s Progress Report, “Right-wing nativists continue to confuse sensible immigration reform with ‘amnesty’ and anti-immigrant groups are exploiting the anger of the right-wing Tea Party movement in an effort to recruit more supporters to join their hateful cause.” Despite American Citizens United’s attempts to distance itself from the neo-Nazis, the Phoenix New Times’ Stephen Lemons says “there’s plenty of overlap between the two groups, whether it be in rhetoric or, occasionally, membership.” (HT: Dawn Teo)
Tea Party activists plan to burn Reps. Periello and Pelosi in effigy.
Tea Party activists plan to burn Reps. Periello and Pelosi in effigy.
The Danville TEA Party organization in Virginia is holding a “Fired Up for Freedom” rally next Saturday where it will be “burning Rep. Tom Perriello and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in effigy in response to the passage of landmark healthcare legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.” Danville TEA Party Chairman Nigel Coleman said that the group’s members feel like they have “no representation in Congress.” Periello, however, met with the organization in the past. On Nov. 5, he had a conversation with several of the TEA Party members, attempting to explain his position while they talked over him:
In July, protesters also hung Democratic Rep. Frank Kratovil (MD) in effigy outside his district office. (HT: Blue Virginia and Firedoglake)
These shocking and despicable acts are becoming all too common at extreme right-wing Republican rallies. Hanging Members in effigy or displaying images of Nazi concentration camps on the steps of the Capitol have no place in any debate and Republican Members of Congress must condemn these actions.
Rick Perry Caters To The Far Right: Obama Is ‘Interested In Punishing Texas’ And ‘Hellbent’ On Socialism
Rick Perry Caters To The Far Right: Obama Is ‘Interested In Punishing Texas’ And ‘Hellbent’ On Socialism
Yesterday, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX) spoke to a meeting of the Midland County Republican Women. He used his speech to portray himself as a stalwart right-wing candidate and endear himself to the Tea Party activists, since he’s locked in a tough fight with Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX) for the GOP gubernatorial nomination for 2010. In his remarks, Perry accused the Obama administration of trying to single out Texas for special punishment and urged activists to stage even bigger Tea Parties:
PERRY: This is an administration that I see punishing this state. I say it’s time for us to stand up. I say it’s time to make Tea Parties twice as big as what they were. [...]
If you don’t think those Tea Parties really worked, let me tell you something: When they all came home in August and were going to different places and town hall meetings, they got an earful. Then they went back to Washington, DC, and the Senate voted that public option down in Senate committee, with a majority Democrats in the Senate and that committee. You better believe they’re listening.
This is an administration hellbent on taking America toward a socialist country, and we ought not to be afraid to say that.
Watch it:
Earlier this week in a speech to the Lake Travis Republican Women’s Club, Perry similarly praised Tea Parties and attacked Republicans in Washington for losing sight of conservative values.
For months, Perry has been working to bone up on his Tea Party bonafides and appeal to the right wing. He awarded hate radio host Rush Limbaugh with an “honorary Texan” award, signed onto the tenther movement to oppose health care reform, and famously floated Texas seceding from the United States to get away from Obama.
There’s no evidence that the Obama administration is out to “punish” Texas. In his Midland speech, Perry complained “that the federal government plans to dump illegal aliens arrested in California and Arizona along the border” and in the Travis County address, he added that it refuses to give him funding for 1,000 more border patrol agents. But as the Texas Tribune noted, Perry could authorize state money for that purpose at any time.
The federal government has tried to give Texas assistance — such as $555 million in stimulus funds for expanded unemployment benefits (which Perry rejected) and has received federal disaster assistance more times than any other state.
Conservatives register Tea Party as an official third party in Florida.
Conservatives register Tea Party as an official third party in Florida.
After hard-line conservatives and tea party activists forced moderate Republican Dede Scozzafava to drop out of the race in New York’s 23rd congressional district, they announced that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist would likely be their next target in the GOP civil war. Politico’s Ben Smith reports that some Florida Republicans recently registered an official “Tea Party” to challenge both Republicans and Democrats:
“The current system has become mired in the sludge of special interest money that seeks to control the leadership of both parties. It’s time for real change,” says Orlando lawyer Frederic O’Neal, the new party’s chairman, who couldn’t be reached immediately by phone, in a press release.
A spokeswoman for the Florida Secretary of State, Jennifer Davis, said the party had registered in August.
O’Neal compared his party’s role to that of the Conservative Party in New York’s 23rd District. Florida, however, lacks the “fusion” rules that has allowed third parties in New York to amass influence by offering their ballot line to acceptable major-party candidates.
On Saturday, Dan Semenza, a Lake County Republican Party executive committee member, told the Daily Commercial that the registration of the third party organization meant “that the Tea Party has considerable strength.”
Jewish Organizations Condemn GOP For Standing By As Tea Party Protesters Waved ‘Vile’ Anti-Semitic Signs
Jewish Organizations Condemn GOP For Standing By As Tea Party Protesters Waved ‘Vile’ Anti-Semitic Signs
One of the most disturbing images from yesterday’s Tea Party rally against health care reform on Capitol Hill was a protester’s gruesome sign showing a pile of dead Holocaust victims. The banner — captured by ThinkProgress here — read: “National Socialist Health Care: Dachau, Germany – 1945.” Another sign said that “Obama takes his orders from the Rothchilds [sic],” a reference to the famous Jewish banking family often implicated in conspiracy theories. Today, Nobel Prize winner and Holoacaust survivor Elie Wiesel strongly condemned the signs, calling them “indecent and disgusting.” From his foundation’s Twitter page:
The National Jewish Democratic Council also criticized the “vile invocations of Nazi and Holocaust rhetoric” and called out GOP leaders who stood in plain view of the signs but ignored them. The Simon Wiesenthal Center demanded that the rally organizers “publicly repudiate the use of Nazi and Holocaust imagery.” Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) made similar comments in a video he posted on YouTube, singling out the rally’s organizer, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN):
I can’t believe that Congresswoman Bachmann would stand where she stood, and see those images, and not have the common decency to say, “I disagree with the use of those images.” I think that she owes the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust an apology. She owes us all an apology. And I’m waiting. We’re all waiting.
Watch it:
When Politico asked House Minority Leader John Boehner’s (R-OH) spokesman for comment on these signs, he simply replied, “Leader Boehner did not see any such sign. Obviously, it would be grossly inappropriate.” Today, Rep. Eric Cantor’s (R-VA) spokesman called the photograph “inappropriate.”
Rep. Mark Kirk begs for Sarah Palin endorsement, but scoffs at Glenn Beck: ‘He’s a very interesting guy.’
Rep. Mark Kirk begs for Sarah Palin endorsement, but scoffs at Glenn Beck: ‘He’s a very interesting guy.’
Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL), who is seeking the Senate in 2010, has been running to the far right to appease his base and win the Republican primary. Kirk has been actively seeking Sarah Palin’s endorsement, hoping she will burnish his right-wing credentials. However, when ThinkProgress interviewed Kirk yesterday, he seemed tepid about accepting an endorsement from popular hate radio talker Glenn Beck:
TP: How about Sarah Palin? How close are you to getting her endorsement?
KIRK: We sent a memo detailing the race, and she’ll be coming in to Chicago shortly.
TP: How about Glenn Beck, if he offered you his endorsement, would you accept that?
KIRK: Uhh, he’s a very interesting guy. I don’t think he’s endorsing any candidate though.
TP: He endorsed Hoffman, you don’t want him to endorse you?
KIRK: So, it’s been nice seeing you.
Watch it:
Earlier this year, Kirk suggested shooting Gov. Pat Quinn (D-IL) because of higher taxes. After voting in support for clean energy legislation, Kirk was hounded by angry tea party protesters. Kirk then bowed to pressure, withdrawing his support for cap and trade. Despite Kirk’s lurch to the right, apparently vitriolic talkers like Beck are a bridge too far.
Government health care rescues protesters at anti-government health care rally.
Government health care rescues protesters at anti-government health care rally.
Thousands of protesters came to Capitol Hill yesterday for Rep. Michele Bachmann’s (R-MN) protest against health care reform, capping months of fear-mongering about the dangers of so-called “socialized” medicine. However, the Washington Post’s Dana Milbank notes that at one point, one of the protesters had a heart attack. Luckily, federally-employed medical personnel were able to quickly attend to him — even though they were part of government-run health care, which is supposedly quite dangerous:
More ominously, a man standing just beyond the TV cameras apparently suffered a heart attack 20 minutes after event began. Medical personnel from the Capitol physician’s office — an entity that could, quite accurately, be labeled government-run health care — rushed over, attaching electrodes to his chest and giving him oxygen and an IV drip.
This turned into an unwanted visual for the speakers, as a D.C. ambulance and firetruck, lights flashing, pulled in just behind the lawmakers. A path was made through the media section, and the patient, attended to by about 10 government medical personnel, was being wheeled away on a stretcher just as House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) stepped to the microphone. “Join us in defeating Pelosi care!” he exhorted. A few members stole a glance at the stretcher.
By the end of the day, “medics had administered government-run health care to at least five people in the crowd who were stricken as they denounced government-run health care.”
Rep. Todd Akin screws up the Pledge of Allegiance, leaves out ‘indivisible.’
Rep. Todd Akin screws up the Pledge of Allegiance, leaves out ‘indivisible.’
Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) had the honor of leading the anti-health care protesters on Capitol Hill today in the Pledge of Allegiance. To show his fervent devotion to the Pledge, he gave a short speech about the importance of the phrase “under God.” However, when it came time to actually recite the Pledge, he was so excited about that one phrase that he forgot to say “indivisible” before “with liberty, and justice for all.” The crowd seemed to remember the actual words though, which threw Akin a bit off track. Watch it:
When right-wing radio host Mark Levin took the stage a short while later, the American flag fell over, and he exclaimed, “What the hell is this? Dare I say it? The flag drops. Hold up the flag and drop that [the health care bill]!”
House Republicans Pander To Tea Party Movement With Frivolous Resolution Inflating 9/12 Protest Numbers
House Republicans Pander To Tea Party Movement With Frivolous Resolution Inflating 9/12 Protest Numbers
Earlier today, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) released a “leader alert,” proclaiming, “Great Work, Congress: Speaker Pelosi’s House to Honor Confucius’ Birthday as Unemployment Nears 10 Percent.” “With millions of Americans looking for jobs and the nation’s unemployment rate nearing 10 percent, the U.S. House of Representatives today will take up a grand total of four non-controversial ’suspension’ bills,” said Boehner.
But Boehner’s “playing hooky” attack on Pelosi comes at an awkward moment, considering that just today, 76 House Republicans introduced a frivolous resolution aimed at playing to the conservatives’ tea party base by officially commemorating the Glenn Beck-inspired 9/12 taxpayer march on Washington. The resolution, introduced by Rep. Tom Price (R-GA), claims that “the fundamental American principles of limited government and personal liberty are under direct assault.” It also seeks to have Congress officially enshrine the inflated crowd numbers pushed by conservatives:
Whereas, on September 12, 2009, hundreds of thousands of American patriots, who refuse to sit idly by as the Federal Government advances skyrocketing deficits, taxpayer-funded bailouts, pork-barrel projects, burdensome taxes, unaccountable policy czars, command-and-control energy policy, and a government takeover of health care, came to Washington, DC, to show their disapproval;
[…]
Whereas estimates of the number of people who peacefully marched from Freedom Plaza to the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on September 12, 2009, range as high as 1,700,000 marchers;
[…]
Resolved, That the House of Representatives expresses its gratitude and appreciation to the hundreds of thousands of people who marched on Washington, DC, on September 12, 2009, to show their love of liberty and their grievance with recent government actions.
The closest thing to an official count, numbers given by the Washington DC Fire Department to ABCNews.com, placed the crowd at “approximately 60,000 to 70,000 people.”
Teabaggers Try To ‘Flush’ Graham Out Of GOP; Graham Responds: ‘If You Don’t Like’ Moderates, ‘You Can Leave’
Teabaggers Try To ‘Flush’ Graham Out Of GOP; Graham Responds: ‘If You Don’t Like’ Moderates, ‘You Can Leave’
In April, former Republican Sen. Arlen Specter (PA) switched his party affiliation to caucus with the Democrats after being targeted by right-wing activists and others within the GOP. Shortly before his departure, an anti-Obama tea party rally focused its attention at Specter, hate radio host Rush Limbaugh demanded that Specter be “flushed” out of the party. A campaign with the theme “Benedict Arnold” subsequently harassed Specter for voting for the stimulus.
Now, after voting to confirm Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court and expressing a willingness to build a compromise approach to clean energy legislation, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) appears to be the new target of tea party activists. At a Graham town hall in Greenville yesterday, activist Harry Kimball of “RINO HUNT” protested by constructing a display that depicted Graham, as well as moderates like Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), being flushed down a toilet:
KIMBALL: This is for every RINO who has failed to represent us. [...] [the toilet represents] flushing them, flushing them.
One attendee of the event asked the senator, “when are you going to announce that you are switching parties?” The question drew loud applause from the crowd. Graham defended himself, and denounced the influence of Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) on the Republican party:
GRAHAM: I’m going to grow this party, I’m not going to let it get [inaudible], I’m not going to let it be hijacked by Ron Paul. [...] I’m going to find people in Maine, Delaware, Illinois, other places–
AUDIENCE: Move there!
GRAHAM: That can win as Republicans, and I’m going to go up, and we’re going to move this party, and this country forward, and if you don’t like it, you can leave.
Watch it:
Angry attendees in the crowd interrupted Graham with cries of, “You’re a country club Republican,” “Sotomayor!,” and “You lie.” Outside the event, right-wing activist Julliet Kozak picketed the town hall with a sign decrying all “Unconstitutional Anti-Christ Socialist Federal Deficit Spending Programs.” She explained that she opposes what Graham is “doing in our Congress, what he’s doing to our country.”
Graham’s fellow South Carolina senator Jim DeMint (R) was an outspoken proponent of ejecting Specter from the Republican Party. DeMint told a conservative blogger Specter “cut our knees from under us.” He added that conservatives in the Senate need to aggressively “go after” Specter and other GOP moderates.
Tea Baggers Who Feel They’re ‘Taxed Enough Already’ Gripe About Inadequate Service In…Public Transit
Tea Baggers Who Feel They’re ‘Taxed Enough Already’ Gripe About Inadequate Service In…Public Transit
Last weekend, tens of thousands of right-wing protesters invaded Washington, DC for the 912 March. Not only were they rallying against President Obama’s plans for health care reform, but more generally against “socialism,” government-run services, and too much taxation.
A large number of the tea party protesters relied on DC’s transit system to get around the city. The Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority (WMATA) reported that on Sept. 12, metrorail ridership was double compared to an average Saturday. The Washington metro, of course, is public transit — in other words, it’s run by big government. Nevertheless, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) has written a letter to WMATA complaining that the service wasn’t good enough for the tea baggers:
“These individuals came all the way from Southeast Texas to protest the excessive spending and growing government intrusion by the 111th Congress and the new Obama administration,” Brady wrote. “These participants, whose tax dollars were used to create and maintain this public transit system, were frustrated and disappointed that our nation’s capital did not make a great effort to simply provide a basic level of transit for them.”
A spokesman for Brady says that “there weren’t enough cars and there weren’t enough trains.” Brady tweeted as much from the Saturday march. “METRO did not prepare for Tea Party March! More stories. People couldn’t get on, missed start of march. I will demand answers from Metro,” he wrote on Twitter.
In his letter, Brady also complained that overcrowding on the metro trains
“forced an 80-year-old woman and elderly veterans in wheelchairs to pay for cabs” — in other words, to rely on the non-government-run transportation system, which tea party protesters would presumably want to support.
A large part of the reason that the DC metro has had so many problems in recent years is that it doesn’t “have dedicated tax revenue.” It has often run into protests from people such Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who has said that we shouldn’t “steal opportunity from our children so that we can have a ride on the Metro.” The American Public Transportation Association says that “recession-imposed limits on government budgets and increased demand are doubtless among the reasons why ‘transit systems are strained all over the country.’”
Americans around the country are relying on metro more than ever. Last year, they took 10.7 billion trips, the highest level in 52 years. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials reports that “an annual investment of $46 billion is needed to keep up with an expected 2.4 percent annual growth in ridership,” but in 2006, “transit capital from all levels of government amounted to only $13.3 billion.”
As for Brady…John Cole points out that when a bill containing $150 million for emergency maintenance funding for the DC metro system came up this summer, Brady voted against it.
Beck fan and 9/12 protest attendee explains why Obama will oppress ‘white America.’
Beck fan and 9/12 protest attendee explains why Obama will oppress ‘white America.’
Despite the tea parties’ ostensible purpose of opposing taxation, many of the signs today at the 9/12 march attacked President Obama using explicit racial and ethnic smears. Glenn Beck, who helped initiated the idea for the rally, has come under fire for similarly stating Obama has a “deep-seated hatred for white people.” ThinkProgress documented some of the hate at the protest, and also spoke to one attendee who shared Beck’s views. The attendee, like Beck, thought Obama hates whites, but also believed he will oppress the white race with communism. We asked him about the sign he was holding up, which showed Obama riding a white baby:
ATTENDEE: Barack was the name of the horse that Mohammed rode to heaven, alright a white horse.
Q: What does the white baby represent?
ATTENDEE: White America, because I do believe our President is a racist [...] But I think it’s mainly communism that he’s going to want to tell us what to wear, what to do, have his little red book like Mao because he really is a communist.
ThinkProgress’ Victor Zapanta produced a video from the rally today, and ThinkProgress reader Vikrum Aiyer submitted several photographs. Watch it:
There were several hate groups among the various corporate and Republican organizations paying FreedomWorks to help finance the rally. The National Association for Rural Landowners, a bronze sponsor, references the incidents at Waco and Ruby Ridge to call for attacks on “government entities” and liberals. In a YouTube video posted in July, the group makes the case for a secession, followed by a violent civil war. Another 9/12 cosponsor, FreeRepublic, is a forum for various radical right causes and as ThinkProgress reported, the shooter at the Holocaust museum found a welcome audience for his writings on the website.
Radical, Racist Signs Featured At 9/12 March
Radical, Racist Signs Featured At 9/12 March
This morning on ABC’s Good Morning America, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) embraced the protesters at today’s 9/12 March in Washington, DC, saying that he was “glad they’re here to take back their country.” He characterized the attendees as nonpartisan, adding that “it’s not about President Obama. It’s not about the Democrats.” Several other Republican lawmakers, including Reps. Tom Price (GA), Mike Pence (IN), Marsha Blackburn (T), and Phil Gingrey (GA) planned to attend and speak at the event.
Members of ThinkProgress attended today’s march and the signs carried by these protesters were hardly nonpartisan — and were often racist, radical portrayals of Obama, despite DeMint’s claim. Some examples of what we saw:
In an interview with the Washington Independent, DeMint claimed that the attendees at the march were “a cross-section of the population.” When it was pointed out to him that almost everyone there was white, DeMint simply said, “It’s probably just the time and organization and the media that promoted it.”
Mark McKinnon, a former adviser to Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) presidential campaign, has warned conservatives from embracing events like the 9/12 March. “It’s bad for Republicans because in the absence of any real leadership, the freaks fill the void and define the party,” McKinnon said.
Sign at 9/12 march: ‘Bury Obamacare with Kennedy.’
Sign at 9/12 march: ‘Bury Obamacare with Kennedy.’
Thousands of right-wing protesters are in DC for the 9/12 Project march today, inspired by Glenn Beck and organized by Republican lobbyists. One rally attendee caught a particularly tasteless sign being distributed to protesters:
Today on ABC’s Good Morning America, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) tried to portray the protesters as a bipartisan group of moderates, saying that “it’s not about President Obama. It’s not about the Democrats. … I’m glad they’re here to take back their country.” DeMint, of course, has made it all “about President Obama,” saying that the health care debate will be Obama’s “Waterloo” because it will “break him.”
Idaho tea party activist/GOP leader arrested for assault with a deadly weapon.
Idaho tea party activist/GOP leader arrested for assault with a deadly weapon.
Idaho resident Challiss McAffee has been “charged with felony aggravated assault after police say he pulled a handgun on a resident whose home he told police he was photographing as part of a foreclosure investigation.” When the resident began questioning McAffee about what he was doing, the confrontation escalated, culminating in McAffee brandishing his gun. McAffee is a member of the Ada County Republican Central Committee and “one of 231 voting members of the state Republican Central Committee.” He is also was also strong backer of libertarian presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) and an activist in the tea party movement. Wells Fargo contractor Tony Schewmaker reportedly hired McAffee for the investigation and bemoaned that “we can’t use a gun in our own protection.” However, a spokesman for Wells Fargo said that McAffee’s behavior was “horrific and absolutely inexcusable.”
Protests At Cardin Town Hall Feature AFP Booth, ‘Death Panel’ Warnings, And Obama-Hitler Signs
Protests At Cardin Town Hall Feature AFP Booth, ‘Death Panel’ Warnings, And Obama-Hitler Signs
EDITOR’S NOTE: Over the coming month, ThinkProgress will be traveling to town hall events across the country to report on what we’re seeing on the ground. This is the first of what we hope will be many eyewitness reports. If you’re attending town halls in your area or see any interesting coverage of them, please email us and let us know.
Despite the raucous crowds that many Democratic lawmakers have been facing in recent weeks, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) decided to go ahead with his town hall meeting at 7:00 p.m. at Towson University yesterday. The venue could hold only 500 people, and by 5:30, the event was completely filled (even though doors weren’t supposed to open until 6:00). Hundreds of other hopeful attendees were shut out.
ThinkProgress attended the protests at Towson, which were loud and crowded hours before the event. Picketers were holding signs reading “Health Care Not Death Care” and “Illegal Immigrants Love Obama Care.” “Public option is no option,” “Cardin come outside,” and “Obama does not care” were popular chants by the anti-reform protesters. Although picketers with signs were supposed to be restricted to the sidewalks along the main street, people soon moved their way up the hill toward the building venue, where shouting matches between pro- and anti-reform crowds broke out. Watch it:
The town hall protest was a hotbed for right-wing myths. We overheard at least one person yelling out, “Obama’s not even a citizen!” On health care, ThinkProgress spoke with several people who believed that Sarah Palin was right to warn about President Obama’s “death panels” and a government system would allow people to die while waiting for care. Watch it:
Many of the protesters had heard about the town hall meeting on local radio station WBAL. Another woman with whom ThinkProgress spoke said that she was an active member of tea party organizations, which were promoting the event, and another woman said that she gets “all of my news from Fox News” and had heard about the town hall on the local Fox station.
Only two groups had exhibition tables set up outside the event: Lyndon LaRouche supporters and the lobbyist-funded Americans for Prosperity (AFP). When ThinkProgress asked an AFP worker whether the group helped organize the protests, he replied, “Yes.” He said that the protesters were “part of our crowd.” Another AFP staff member said that they had encouraged their members to come to the event, but didn’t formally bus people in. On its website, AFP Maryland had been telling its members to ask “tough questions” but “participate in [a] respectful manner.”
Some photos of the AFP booth and other protest signs (including some comparing Democrats to the Nazis):
During the actual town hall meeting, Cardin was reportedly “booed and jeered repeatedly throughout his 25-minute presentation and the question-and-answer period.” At one point, four police officers had to stand in front of the stage. Watch video of the event here.
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