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Tallahassee, FL – The Tea Party Movement has gained steam in the last 18 months, fueled by disenchantment with high unemployment, federal spending and big policies, like the stimulus and health care bill. But along the way, it's also been labeled in the media as extreme, right wing and socially conservative. Lynn Hatter reports.
By February 2009, the auto companies had received bailout money, the $700 billion stimulus package had just passed, but the health care bill was still in its infancy. And that month CNBC aired these comments by Rick Santelli:
"This is America! How many of you people want to pay for your neighbor's mortgage that has an extra bathroom and can't pay their bills? President Obama, are you listening?"
This is what many Tea Party members say started the movement. Here in Florida, Attorney Pace Allen was among the first to become active. He was a Tea Partier before there was such a thing. Back in 2007, Allen started up taxteaparty.com to protest property taxes in Florida, now he talks about a constitutionally limited government.
"The federal government should be as small as possible, and its been a hundred year slide toward a more centralized government. And the more centralized it becomes the more expensive it is, because the less efficient it is, and the more it seems the taxes go up."
Allen says the movement has three has three main principals - fiscal responsibility, a constitutionally limited federal government and free markets.
"The question always comes up is, well you have to have some regulations. Yes, that's true, there needs to be regulations and licensing, of course. But the federal government is mandating what kind of light bulbs can be manufactured. That's ridiculous, there's nothing in the Constitution that gives them that power."
James Madison Institute President Bob McClure says that's what the Tea Party movement is about. The Institute is a conservative policy think tank.
"What I've informally called leave us alone,' coalition wants to be left alone to run their business, coach their kids' ball games and buy and sell without regulations that are burdensome, without higher taxes. They see what's come out of Washington and they're displeased with it and it's far, far less about social issues and more about economic issues and the future of the country."
The media and political pundits have worked to define the Tea Party, but McClure says labels can't be applied to the entire group.
"The Tea Party is not really interested in how I define them, by their very nature. And they're probably not concerned with Bob McClure's at the James Madison Institute, definition of how they are because if you ask 50 of them, you'll get 50 different answers."
Tea Party members talk frequently about their emphasis on government issues. At the same time, there's been a de-emphasis on social ones, like gay marriage and abortion rights. It's also been criticized for its apparent lack of diversity. But Jerome Hudson of Tallahassee bucks the statistic of the white, over 40, Tea Party member.
"What drew me to the Tea Party is that it doesn't have a racial quota to meet."
As a 24-year-old black male and frequent speaker at Tea Party events, Hudson says minority representation is small but growing.
"It's definitely not a whole bunch of bearded, drunk clansmen that it's portrayed as. The events are always family oriented, there are dogs, and babies in strollers, just very informed and passionate, peaceful people. Open minded. They don't even consider my race."
There are fringe groups in the Tea Party that don't represent the majority but are getting a lot of attention. The movement has become a political force this election season, causing both Democrat and Republican lawmakers to fight harder to keep their seats - increasingly, unsuccessfully.