Lots of groups host candidates' forums. Usually, there are more candidates than concerned citizens. That's why I'm surprised that, so far, there are 122 RSVPs for a Lehigh Valley Tea Party candidates' forum on April 9th.When I attended one of their meetings last month, I was shocked by the 320 plus crowd packed into Palmer Township's Chrin Community Center, especially since they were listening to a relatively dry speaker. These folks are obviously very conservative, and as I've noted before, lilly white. But it would be a mistake to marginalize them. Are they angry and frustrated? Yes. Would they abolish Social Security, Welfare and Medicare? You betcha'. But are they out on a pass from Allentown State Hospital? No.
Their forum on Friday, April 9th, is at the Chrin Community Center, and starts at 6 PM. All candidates on the Primary Ballot for US Senate, US Congress (15th District), and PA Governor have been invited.
Bobby Gunther Walsh, the LV's Glenn Beck, will emcee the festivities. So far, the following candidates have agreed to appear:
Congress: LV Congressman Charlie Dent and his Republican opponent, Mat Benol.
Senate: Peg Luksik (R), Joe Vodvarka (D), and Joe Sestak (D) (maybe).
Governor: Sam Rohrer (R) and a surrogate for Tom Corbett (R).
No word yet from Democrats John Callahan, Arlen Specter, Jack Wagner, Dan Onorato and Joe Hoeffel? Are they turned off by some of the threats and violence directed at Democratic members of Congress over the federal heath care overhaul? What's really sad is that some of this is coming from Republican Congress members:
Rep. Michele Bachmann: "I want people in Minnesota armed and dangerous….having a revolution every now and then is a good thing.”Maybe it's just me, but I doubt many Democrats will be showing at this forum. They're in no mood to Join the Angry Mob.
Rep. John Boehner: "Take [Democratic Congressman] Steve Driehaus, for example. He may be a dead man. He can't go home to the west side of Cincinnati.”
Rep. Steve King: "Let's beat that other side to a pulp! Let's take them out. Let's chase them down."
How about Pat Toomey, darling of conservatives everywhere? He probably wants a check.
I think it is time a Lehigh Valley mainstream radio like WAEB show that whackjob Walsh the door.
ReplyDeleteWhy would any Democrat want to talk to a group who violently oppose them.
By the way, how many teabaggers collect Social Security, Medicare, SSI, Disability or even veteran benefits.
Let us be pure on this. Citizen soldiers should be proud to serve and once out of the service, their perks are over. If one can justify socialism for inactive soldiers and staff based on prior government, their argument is bullshit.
Moral, ethical and ideological purity can be a bitch!
Actually Bernie there are quite a few people who are at least registered as Democrats who belong to 9-12 movements.They wonder when their party left them, they understand their views no longer matter within the Democratic Party.
ReplyDeleteMock and denigrate these people all you want, they have every right to be angry and every right to assemble and organise.
Threats to the Dem's, what a joke, I have turned more serious examples over to the police for speaking at city council.
Scott Armstrong
How many govt. programs like Medicare, Social Security or unemployement are these people on? How is it that they're always marching and meeting when the rest of us are working? Tea Partiers are on the dole big time and I'm losing my interest in them since the more they are interviewed, the more obvious it becomes that their mission has nothing to do with issues...it's a white thing.... they're people who are frustrated that a woman and a black man and a Mormon are running the Congress and White House.
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot of anger out there. How much? don't know.
ReplyDeleteI'm a dem and intend to vote against all incumbents. There is no office holder in the lehigh valley that has done anything to change the idiocy going on in Harrisburg,
You'll say that some of these people have great constituent services, They should. We pay for the most expensive legislative staffing in the US. Despite all that support we have gridlock, members in jail and members going to jail. Come on. We are all stupid to say that this is in anyway a satisfactory way to do business.
Threats to against elected officials, such as those death threats directed at Sen. Jim Bunning a month ago as he held up unemployment legislation over an unrelated issue, are despicable.
ReplyDeleteThe US House Sergeant at Arms said they are not unusual, however. And currently no worse than previous times when controversial legislation was debated. From The Washington Post:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2010/03/25/DI2010032500986.html
Democrats are trying to draw a victim card here. Given bombing approval ratings and dim prospects for keeping their majority, they need all the help they can get.
Scott, Yes there are Dems among this group, although it is a low number. Their local leader was just quoted making disparaging remarks about Dems in TMC.
ReplyDeleteBut you've got to pay attention to any group that can draw 300 people to a meeting about politics. should
who made disparaging remarks as a leader?
ReplyDeletethey have every right to be angry and every right to assemble and organise.
ReplyDeleteYes because how date those DemocRATS enact a policy advocated by Bob Dole in 1994! The scurrilous bastards! Shoot them!
"who made disparaging remarks as a leader?"
ReplyDeleteIn a 3/27 news account, Kim Schmidtner made these remarks about Rs.
"many people don't believe the Republican Party is running principled candidates."
"If the Republican Party was running, supporting and endorsing principled candidates, there would be no need for a third party."
What's that, if it is not disparaging?
"How many govt. programs like Medicare, Social Security or unemployement are these people on? "
ReplyDeleteThe difference is that these people paid their fair share INTO those programs unlike much of the Dems constituency. 40% of households in this country pay no taxes at all......
Bob Dole is a wishy-washy political loser on boner medication. Citing him is equivalent to citing the worst Democrat about one of their initiatives.
ReplyDeleteBob Dole was the Senate Majority Leader and the VP nominee in 1996. I think some of the children that read this blog need to brush up on history.
ReplyDeleteThe difference is that these people paid their fair share INTO those programs unlike much of the Dems constituency. 40% of households in this country pay no taxes at all......
ReplyDeleteDo you have a source to back up this ludicrous claim? Or is this just more dog-whistle stuff?
Excuse me, Presidential nominee.
ReplyDeleteThe system is broken.
ReplyDeleteConservative nor liberal thinking will not fix it.
I don't agree with all of Jake Towne's views, but he's got my vote at this point because we need people in congress who are not married to special interest groups that prop up and support directly and indirectly the Republican and Democratic parties.
The views of the radical right and radical left have their place and need to be heard in our political discourse, but in no way should they be driving the bus, yet it always seems that they are the ones behind the wheel as the rational middle gets tossed about.
Independent thinkers who are not tied to the political machine and are not afraid to say no or occassionally bite the hand that feeds them seem to me as the only way out.
oh yeah....town is a centrist. please take your meds, the guy thinks its ok to let people starve, guess he thinks it builds character.
ReplyDeleteI wonder when people are turned away from the hospital and don't make it, will a new office of corpse management be created? Or will the need be backfilled with the people who used to have jobs in the current state.
4:11,
ReplyDeleteHyperbolic imperatives are the rhetorical equivalent of baby talk. Goo goo. Daa daa.
His webpage says medecaid, welfare and food stamps are morally bankrupt. I guess we should all take ours and damn the others by his stance. Then again he wants guns for all. I'm seeing a pattern in his fringe.
ReplyDeleteEvery teabagger that accepts a government pension, social security, medicaid, SSI, disability, medicare including retired military pension and healthcare is a hypocrite.
ReplyDeleteEnough bullshit, you want purity fine, give up every governmental perk you receive. Otherwise keep your ass talking bullshit up your anus where it belongs.
This is about a Black President that some of you racist shitheads can't deal with.
Every sexually obsessed tea party opponent should stand for purity by refusing to pay taxes and unite against a president who promised peace and delivered a much wider and more expensive war. It's time to do the right thing.
ReplyDelete