Frank Rich and the Tea Party Movement

I really enjoy reading New York Times’ Frank Rich. Why you may ask? He cracks me up when he tries to write about the “conservative” mindset. Today was no exception. He has an op-ed piece on the tea party movement and how it relates to the man who committed suicide by crashing his plane into an IRS building last month. I guess this is his way of wishing Happy Birthday to the Tea Party Movement.



He goes into the usual liberal talking points about Joseph Stack and his anti-government views and his hatred of the IRS; and how this is the same platform of the Tea Party Movement. He seems to be especially upset with Glen Beck, not that is all that unusual for him. He continues his diatribe using as reference an investigative piece that was written by David Barstow. Barstow, an award winning journalist for The New York Times, did a piece on the tea party movement.


Barstow went to such places as Sandpoint, Idaho. An area of the state that is close to areas that have a claim to fame. Ruby Ridge, where members of Randy Weaver’s family were shot and killed in 1992, and the home of one the largest Aryan Nation groups in the country. He also travelled to such places as Waco Texas, the home of The Branch Davidians. Now, I have never been to Waco or Sandpoint. I am sure that some very nice people live there, but let’s be honest here; they are not exactly every town USA. Barstow even went as far to involve the LaRouche movement. Not exactly the same mindset of conservatives.


Frank Rich left out the part of the “manifesto” of the sicko who crashed his plane was the lines about communism. Mr. Stack didn’t seem to have any coherent political mindset. His thought process was all over the map. Friends of the pilot have said that they never heard him bring up politics or the tea party movement. Rich goes further to bring up Timothy McVeigh. The supposition being made by Rich is that if McVeigh were alive today he would be a member of the tea party movement, simply due to the fact that it is “anti-government”.

I have been involved with the tea party movement for not quite a year now. I have been to meetings based on the 9-12 principles put forth by Glen Beck, and have been to quite a few tea parties as well. I posted plenty of pictures of the 9/12 march on Washington last summer, and I had a great time that day. I am not saying that there are not some “out there” ideas from some that go to the tea parties, but it is not the majority.

 Rich and Barstow completely miss the fact that everyday people have joined the tea party movement because they are seeing an out of control federal government. They are seeing a government that is spending money at unsustainable levels that is endangering the future prosperity of this country. They also are missing the fact that some of the people that go to these protests are not all republicans, let alone conservatives. Obama voters attend tea parties. The more moderate and conservative members of the democratic party are just as appalled at how the government is behaving. You need to look a further out than your own liberal mindset, and then maybe you just might get it.