Almost two years since President Barack Obama entered the White House, a new grip of political fever is sweeping across the States. The Tea Party are a political force, backed by Sarah Palin, with ambitions to reinvigorate and change the face of modern American politics. They want to see an end to big government and a return to the founding principles of the constitution. With the November mid-terms approaching, what is this movement? Is it a revolution or something purely futile? Will this transform the way Americans think about politicians? Is it a force for good?
The movement became prominent after President Obama’s bail-out bill that threw billions of dollars at troubled financial institutions and created the Troubled Asset Relief Protection scheme (TARP), in essence government intervention into ‘failing’ industries. This for many American conservatives was a step too far; this was the encroachment of big-government and the antinomy of federal autonomy. One surprising feature of this movement has been the proportion of women. Much of this has been put down to the amount of unemployed female population forced to manage the accounts of households. Why they ask do they have to tighten their belts, when the government is adding to the fiscal debt each day?
However, the party appears to be far from a group of fiscal conservatives concerned about the national balance sheet. It is an amorphous group of disillusioned citizens at society, immigration, politics and the essence of America. The recent march on Washington saw a call to return to fundamentals and the upholding of the constitution. Is this romanticism and the amelioration of an earlier era, a desire to return to ideals or does it possess racist undertones? The movement is full of poor, white families who feel ostracised from an America they once knew. The changing face of America and the failure to tackle immigration has only exacerbated the problem. It seems far from coincidental though that the election of a black President could push this into the mainstream.
I don’t think this is all aimed at Obama; this is an objection to all politicians and the way both main parties play ball. The fact that the Tea Party are placing candidates mainly in fringe Republican seats does not necessarily mean it is win-win for the Democrats, many people are disaffected with the change they thought this new era of politics would potentially bring. The biggest mistake would be for the Republicans to cater for this fringe. It is probably true to say that two years ago, these members could have been called extremists, though it was a collapse in the politics of centre that brought Hitler to power right?
I don’t know what everyday Americans think or whether Sarah Palin could possibly be made of substance (probably not). This is a challenge to the norm and certainly come mid-November politicians will sit a little uneasy when the polls are announced.
The movement became prominent after President Obama’s bail-out bill that threw billions of dollars at troubled financial institutions and created the Troubled Asset Relief Protection scheme (TARP), in essence government intervention into ‘failing’ industries. This for many American conservatives was a step too far; this was the encroachment of big-government and the antinomy of federal autonomy. One surprising feature of this movement has been the proportion of women. Much of this has been put down to the amount of unemployed female population forced to manage the accounts of households. Why they ask do they have to tighten their belts, when the government is adding to the fiscal debt each day?
However, the party appears to be far from a group of fiscal conservatives concerned about the national balance sheet. It is an amorphous group of disillusioned citizens at society, immigration, politics and the essence of America. The recent march on Washington saw a call to return to fundamentals and the upholding of the constitution. Is this romanticism and the amelioration of an earlier era, a desire to return to ideals or does it possess racist undertones? The movement is full of poor, white families who feel ostracised from an America they once knew. The changing face of America and the failure to tackle immigration has only exacerbated the problem. It seems far from coincidental though that the election of a black President could push this into the mainstream.
I don’t think this is all aimed at Obama; this is an objection to all politicians and the way both main parties play ball. The fact that the Tea Party are placing candidates mainly in fringe Republican seats does not necessarily mean it is win-win for the Democrats, many people are disaffected with the change they thought this new era of politics would potentially bring. The biggest mistake would be for the Republicans to cater for this fringe. It is probably true to say that two years ago, these members could have been called extremists, though it was a collapse in the politics of centre that brought Hitler to power right?
I don’t know what everyday Americans think or whether Sarah Palin could possibly be made of substance (probably not). This is a challenge to the norm and certainly come mid-November politicians will sit a little uneasy when the polls are announced.
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