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Conservative conflicts are brewing
Delaware GOP Senate nominee Christine O'Donnell this weekend attended the annual conservative Values Voters summit in Washington, DC. There, she emphasized that although she is backed by the Tea Party, she is also a politician who toiled for years in the "values movement," alluding to her longtime work as a Christian activist.
What is the Tea Party? Is it a recession-era version of the religious right? Is it something else? And if the Tea Party is not a religious movement, why is it raising up candidates like O'Donnell who has a strong background in religious activism?
The American Tea Party movement is not a religious movement at all. It is an aptly named financially and philosophically motivated movement -- a clear demonstration of the fact that everyday Americans will not tolerate being ignored or taken for granted by any political candidate or any political party.
When a wild gang of American patriots got fed up with big government and unjust taxation back in 1773, they took matters into their own hands. They didn't pass around a petition, organize a political action committee, or coin a slick campaign slogan. They had a few beers, dressed up as Indians, sneaked onto British ships, and dumped some tea into the Boston Harbor.
They must have looked like a bunch of crazy people.
Perhaps even as "crazy" as the wild-eyed folks holding signs and shouting slogans at today's "Tea Parties" look to some of the rest of us.
Frustration always does look a little bit crazy. And today's Tea Party participants surely are frustrated. They are frustrated with a President and a Congress that do not represent their values, but also (and perhaps most especially) with a Republican party that has largely abandoned the principles of small government and fiscal conservatism.
The religiously motivated Americans who voted George W. Bush into office expected that he would enact federal policies in line with their family values, and for the most part, they were not disappointed. Bush replaced supreme court justices William Rehnquist and Sandra Day O'Connor with undeniably conservative justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito. Also, much to the outrage of liberal, anti-religious opponents, his Faith-Based Initiative strengthened and supported the work of many socially conservative charities and organizations.
The fiscally conservative Americans who voted George W. Bush into office, however, absolutely were disappointed. Discretionary spending increased by 5.3% in his first six years in office. His far-reaching, over-spending No Child Left Behind policy dumped tax dollars into schools with little to show for it but test-focused teachers and a heavy-handed presence of the federal government in local schools.
Both the religious right and the Tea Party movement might find themselves backing many of the same candidates, but that does not necessarily make them political allies. In fact, as November elections grow nearer, I expect we'll see a fair amount of push and pull between these two groups, as they compete to influence the political stances and win the attentions of conservative candidates.
The most successful candidates will be those who manage to please both kinds of conservatives, using good old fashioned politics to convince each that their concerns are a priority. Can a candidate truly prioritize both social issues and fiscal ones? Perhaps. But voters like me, for whom issues of life and defense of marriage and the family are a greater priority than fiscal concerns, will be watching carefully for any signs of insincerity.
By
Danielle Bean
|
September 22, 2010; 2:18 PM ET
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Posted by: Secular | September 23, 2010 2:06 PM
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One of the problems with a huge democracy like ours is that politicians can rarely be honest about the compromises they make. These politicians may have exactly the same views and values that you do, but they must make compromises all of the time in the hope that they can get compromises from others when important legislation comes up.
I'm sure that on very divisive issues, the best compromise a legislator can get from a political opponent is "I won't oppose your legislation, but I can't support it." Our legislators are often demonized for not standing firm on their beliefs, but I imagine that I would understand why very quickly if I were in their position.
There are things that I believe are extremely important, but are political "third rails". I am disappointed that the people I voted for are not acting as I had hoped, but I understand why. It's a small comfort.
Posted by: fredirish | September 22, 2010 10:57 PM
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The kind of politician who'd be able to manage to please both sides is the kind being RINO'd out of existence. Remember the last Republican to manage it successfully for a time? Not Dubya, but his daddy--who, when he violated his "read my lips--no new taxes" pledge, was out on his a$$. Republicans have embraced deficit spending ever since.
Posted by: bitterblogger | September 22, 2010 5:31 PM
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Aside from the extreme views the Tea Party candidates embrace, America also needs to remember the dark side of the movement, which is brought home vividly in this article http://wp.me/pNmlT-q5
Posted by: Dh1953 | September 22, 2010 3:31 PM
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The Tea party folks are without a shadow of a doubt bunch of white bigots who cannot stand the change the country is going through. The bigotry is quite obvious looking at the poster they bring to their so called rallies, etc. Although they protest that those are generally a minority of people etc, etc, blah blah, blaaah. The clincher is that they had their first rally on 15th April 2009.That wasn't even 100 days since Obama took the oath office. They are protesting that taxes are too high after "W" leaves and Obama comes in. That is sufficient to prove their bigotry against the first black president. Their incessant blather about Obama's birth place, etc, etc.
Without a doubt that these are also the right wing religious bigots. Look at the folks they are trying to get elected Christie O'Donnell, Sarah Palin - their Darli