Tea Party National Convention
Tea Partiers once again sailed into a sea of controversy last week as more than 600 people from around the country attended the first "National Tea Party Convention" held at the landlocked Gaylord Opryland Hotel & Convention Center in Nashville. The event culminated with more than 1,100 people enjoying a keynote dinner speech by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, which was also broadcast around the country on cable.
You might think that the storm was due to mainstream media's vulgar derision of attendees as "tea baggers" or the tamer "Astroturfers" -- but you would be wrong. Larger issues seemed to erupt concerning sponsor Judson Phillips and his for-profit Tea Party Nation, the location, ticket fees, hotel rates, travel costs, Sarah Palin, her purported speaker's fee, the colors of the tablecloths and napkins, and just about everything else.
While the event may not have represented all Tea Party organizations as the convention title might suggest, it's difficult for us to take seriously the disparagement that ensued over like-minded people exercising their right to assemble peaceably, freely paying the known costs (nothing hidden, except the hotel and gasoline taxes) and enlightening themselves with whatever the conference offered.
Skepticism, especially in politics, is healthy, but contempt is not. This hullabaloo over a sold-out conference of willing participants had all the hallmarks of Leftmedia agitation.
The Tea Party is the mother of all big-tent movements. There is plenty of room, and need, for Tea Partiers of all stripes and in all places -- including those willing to fork over big bucks for a weekend confab. However, to be most effective, we must all remain focused on the fact that the Rule of Law is being usurped by the rule of men, and we must each play our part to work diligently at electing honorable representatives to replace the current hegemony in Washington.
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