On the Nox of Dec. 16 , 1773 , about 150 American settler boarded a trio of ships in the Boston Harbor and hoisted C of teatime - stock up chest of drawers into the surrounding water [ root : Silverman . The Boston Tea Party was the final result of simmering resentment against the British government that had finally boil over into scandalisation . American colonists lacked any direct representation in parliament , and the political science abroad had been raise a series of taxes on them , sparking the revolutionary warfare cry , " no tax revenue without internal representation . " Demonstrating against the Britain ’s financial handling that wintery nighttime , the Massachusetts colonist organized one of the first major acts of rebellion that would eventually annunciate theAmerican Revolution .
On Jan. 21 , 2008 , long after the United States had disjoint itself from Great Britain and become responsible for its own financial policies , a dip in stock prices officially marked the beginning of aneconomic recession[source : Harris ] . Asunemploymentspiked around the country , a newly electedObamaadministration began patch together a monolithic stimulus package , the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act , intended to invigorate American banking concern and business organisation like pouring gasoline into a car ’s empty tank . But not everybody favor the federal government investing more than $ 800 billion into the recovery effort , and revolutionary - era mantra , let in " no taxation without agency " get stirring among some politically conservative chemical group .
Even before President Obama officially took office , a part - time dealer posted a provocative directive on an on-line Wall Street forum that went viral . Riled by the notion of the government dipping into the public coffers in rules of order to bail out individual foundation , Graham Makohoniuk kindle off , " get off a Tea Bag to Congress & Senate " on the Market Ticker Forums [ source : Skarda ] . As the twenty-first - century Boston Tea Party spirit quick spread among likeminded conservatives dismayed by the Obama administration ’s stimulus package and dwindle away job and retreat prospect , tea bags began arriving in Congress members ' mailboxes , protests sprang up in hundred of cities , and within weeks , the Tea Party movement was comport .
Birth of the Tea Party: A Timeline
The Tea Party often is associated with striking name like former Alaska governor andvice presidential candidateSarah Palinand Texas Rep. Ron Paul , but the person responsible for initially catch the feet on the street for the motility ’s first rallies was far - remove from big - ticket government . Washingtonian Keli Carender was working as amathand résumé writing teacher at a non - profit when she decided to put together what ’s think the first Tea Party rally in Seattle [ source : Kaste ] . On Feb. 16 , 2009 , before the Tea Party had mushroom into a validate entity , Carender swear on blogging and societal media to attract about 200 people to a protest against the federal government ’s economic stimulus parcel [ beginning : All Things regard ] .
The apparent movement received its first major public attention three day later when CNBC observer Rick Santelli called for a"Tea Party " on national television . Referred to as " the fustian hear ' round the world , " Santelli argued against the administration ’s mortgage bailout plan on the floor Chicago Mercantile Exchange , and the time depart viral online [ generator : CNBC ] . The next day Tea Party partisan disperse around the country come together via group discussion call to form the National Tea Party Coalition , and on April 15 , 2009 , up to 500,000 supporter participated in the motility ’s first " Tax Day " objection [ source : CNN ] . And that bounce , with the Obama administration frame the legislative wheel in apparent movement for its futurehealthcare overhaul , Tea Party fury continued to climb up around three primary platform [ source : Harlan Stone ] :
During its first class , the Tea Party , much like the more politically liberalOccupy Wall Street movement , attracted intensive media reportage . In January 2010 , for example , the Economist magazine named the Tea Party " America ’s most vibrant political force , " part due to its success with helping elect Scott Brown , Massachusetts ' first Republican senator in 30 twelvemonth [ source : The Week ] . But while its frequent and colourful dissent , typically feature activists line up up in colonial costume and bear around copy of theU.S. Constitution , were effective attending - grabber , the movement had yet to coalesce into a co-ordinated body . To be clear , the design of the Tea Party was n’t to form a viablepolitical third company , but ex-serviceman nominee and causes and provide home exposure to their elections .
On Feb. 5 , 2010 , the Tea Party give up off its first national convention , headlined by Sarah Palin . Six hundred delegates from local Tea Party chapters meet to get energize , hash out objectives and get up for the coming midterm Congressional elections that posed a prize opportunity to drum out the Democratic Party from its absolute majority position . The convention also provide a better coup d’oeil into who just incorporate the Tea Party ranks .
Who is the Tea Party?
The so - called " Tea Party godmother , " Keli Carender who organized the movement ’s first anti - economical stimulus demo in Seattle , Wash. , is n’t your typical supporter . Carender was 28 years old when she kick - commence the wave of dissent , which tended to attract old voter fired up against theObamaadministration and its economic and healthcare - connect policy . In April 2010 , CBS News and the New York Times surveyed American adults and self - identified Tea Party backers , and cull the next snapshot of the buttoned-down drive [ source : Montopoli ] :
The Tea Party ab initio pore on an opposition to the Union political science interfering in economical matters , choose the private sector to resist for itself and leave taxpayer dollars alone . The CBS News and the New York Times sketch also found a basic distaste for President Barack Obama – his administration ’s policies away – as the top motivator for Tea Party activism [ source : Montopoli ] . Broadening the oscilloscope of Tea Party members ' concerns , a February 2011 opinion poll conducted by the nonpartizan Pew Research Center identified same - sexual practice marriage and miscarriage as societal result they commonly disapprove of [ source : Clement and Green ] . And compare to the average voter , Tea Party activists were more likely to cite religion as the determining factor of their political and social ideologies [ root : Clement and Green ] .
Those religious and social influences also localise apart the Tea Party from its most similar political counterpart , libertarianism . Whereas the Tea Party and the Republican Party intersection on many fiscal and social issues , both tea partiers and libertarians share a deeper distrust of rank - and - file politicians to reach their goals of drastically define the ambit of governance . For that intellect , many Tea Party platforms echo the libertarian ethos of eradicate and defunding government programs , and some consider Texas Rep. Ron Paul , the de facto libertarian leader , to be the Tea Party ’s " intellectual godfather " [ reservoir : The New York Times ] . But really , the Tea Party skews more to the right in many way than libertarianism , and its intensive demands have had renowned ripple effects in Washington , D.C.
Tea Party: From Protest to Political Powerhouse
By summer 2011 , the Tea Party had become a full - fledged political power plant that gas a serial of electoral victories and respectable popular backing . accord to public opinion poll , 25 pct of Americans held a positive position of the grassroots effort [ source : Crowley ] . With the U.S. government on the verge of defaulting on its debt obligation if Congress did n’t pass legislation to raise the debt ceiling , the Tea Party once again emerge as the most outspoken , emphatic group against the measure . Tea Party - affiliated extremity of the House of Representatives publicly excoriate the adoption increase as yet another model of Washington goldbrick off its loan effect onto taxpayers , and as a consequence , the last lawmaking let in a via media of massive outlay cut that irked congressional Democrats [ source : Crowley ] .
Previously building its impulse , the bm had flexed its brawniness during the November 2010 midterm election in which activists hit the street to lobby for Tea Party - approved Republican candidates . Although the initiative did n’t snag enough Senate seat away from the Democratic Party to end their absolute majority status , the Tea Party was acknowledge for turning the U.S. House of Representatives back to a Republican majority , much to their delectation [ author : CNN ] . That showdown also introduced a harvest of Tea Party - sleep with conservative politicians into government , admit Sen. Rand Paul from Kentucky , Sen. Pat Toomey from Pennsylvania and Florida Rep. Allen West .
Although the Tea Party had prided itself on its outsider status , swing the interior political conversation from outside traditional Washington , D.C. , networks , with those midterm election achiever it had work its path to the U.S. Capitol . In June 2010 , Tea - political party - favorite Rep. Michele Bachmann , a Republican from Minnesota , registered the House Tea Party Caucus , made up of 28 founding representatives [ source : CNN ] . In January 2011 , Sen. Rand Paul , the Kentucky Republican , followed suit , and a three - person Senate Tea Party Caucus was launch [ source : Sonmez ] .
The rise of the Tea Party from a protest collective to political powerhouse has n’t occurred without controversy , however . The movement , for exemplar , has been linked to conservative Kansas billionaires David and Charles Koch who have been criticized for funnel jillion intoattack adsand movement to oust popular politician [ rootage : Negrin ] . Moreover , people have disagree with supporters ' religion - infuse approach to evaluate candidates and issues , not to remark their strident enemy to the Obama administration ’s economic stimulus architectural plan andAffordable Healthcare Act .
Some phallus also have been criticized for using inflammatory language and rhetoric ; in one example at a March 2010 Tea Party rally , news medium reported some protesters take aim racist and homophobic aspersion at passing popular congress members , include formercivil rightsleader and Georgia Rep. John Lewis [ origin : The workweek ] . First State facto loss leader , includingSarah Palin , have publicly press activists to distance themselves from fringe or ultra opinions expressed within Tea Party ranks . But as the company continues to delineate its structure , purpose and content , some also wonder whether it will survive for the political foresightful haulage .
Will the Tea Party Last?
One measurable downside to the Tea Party ’s success has been mounting public opposition . Supporters have n’t drastically dropped off , but as its visibility has increased and become a household name , the Tea Party has attract a host of detractors in a shortsighted amount of time . grant to an April 2010 poll commissioned by CBS News and the New York Times , 21 per centum of respondents catch the Tea Party favorably , whereas 18 percent obtain an unfavorable perception of the conservative movement [ source : Campbell and Putnam ] . Just over a class after , the pct of Tea Party fans remained steadfast , but its critics had swell to 40 pct ; a Gallup poll from April 2011 similarly found 47 percent of Americans were n’t behind the Tea Party suit [ source : CNN ] . In addition , pith Tea Party activist engage with local grassroots exertion to promote and vote in favored candidates is likely quite little ; by one estimate from Emory University political scientist Alan Abramowitz , it comprise an estimated 5 percentage of the American electorate [ source : Balz ] .
After the 2010 midterm congressional election steeped in Tea Party activism and Republican victories , the movement shifted its sights to the 2012 presidential election . That showdown introduce the luck to oust the enemy - in - tribal chief of the Tea Party : President Barack Obama . Despite the presence of Tea Party - sanction competition for the Republican nomination , including Herman Cain , Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry , the Republican Party at turgid selected the more moderate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney . Some pundits understand the Tea Party ’s unfitness to push one of their more ideologically ordinate candidates to theRepublican National Conventionas a signal of its dwindling lastingness , but others emphasize that disembarrass the White House of President Obama would be a cause for Tea Party jubilation no matter who takes his spot [ rootage : Gonyea ] .
One point many political commentators and expert agree on is that the future tense of the Tea Party rests less on how it can defeat the Democratic Party than how it can get along with the Republican constitution . A majority of Tea Party activists identify as Republican , and in many ways , it but exist as a sort of extra interest radical within the party , an inevitable product of political polarization in the United States [ generator : Balz ] . And unless the movement can continue in next elections to agitate its extremist - conservative , handpicked candidate into place , its followers may gradually blend back into the base Republican fold . throw the partizan nature of contemporary American government , however , guests may come and go , but the Tea Party in all probability wo n’t be over anytime soon .
When I wroteHow engage Wall Street Worksin other 2012 , the Tea Party popped up in my research as something of a button-down variation of the anti - Wall Street protest movement . Political and social ideologies aside , the two chemical group do share much in common in price of their grassroots coming to regulate government , as well as the flurry of media attention they ’ve obtain for their outspoken efforts to reform America . But while Occupy Wall Street focused on propagate its message beyond American borders , the Tea Party has remain definitely U.S.-centric , and its focus has ante up off in elections won and congressional pressure level exerted . But by virtue of positioning itself on the far right end of the political spectrum , the Tea Party has become one of the most controversial and derided groups in the nation , blamed for brewing infighting and partiality in Washington , D.C. Only time – and possibly the event of the 2012 presidential election – will tell if an inherently controversial grouping , like Occupy Wall Street , will survive the Sturm und Drang of modern American politics .
