By Adrian Murray 912 Ft. Worth Project
As April 15th approaches many Tea Party & 912 Groups across the country are planning rallies to voice their displeasure at the government. Thats all well and good but the question must be asked: To what end?
The past year has seen massive protests in cities and towns across America. Citizens anger and concern about the tyrannical shift in our federal bureaucracy has been well documented and studiously ignored by the media and by those in power. Protesters are dismissed as a radical fringe out of step with the mainstream ignorant of the issues and paranoid with an unwarranted fear.
Those in power in Washington do not listen to the American people simply because they do not care.
In 2008 a combination of deceit and naivet resulted in the election of Barack Obama to the Presidency and an entire collection of like-minded despots to Congress and state legislatures across America. The stage has been set for the drawing of the final curtain on the American experiment in self-rule.
We all know or at least sense this. November 2010 represents the last opportunity to prevent this inexorable slide into tyranny.
Some in the Tea Party movement wish to distance themselves from any of the political parties staking out an ideological ground they believe will protect the movement such that it is from contamination. Their rallies are peppered with semi-celebrities and policy pundits who know what buttons to push to elicit cheers from the crowds a noble exercise if it motivates them to do something other than cheer.
The movement which helped delay and dilute but did not prevent the health care monstrosity from being signed into law now faces the daunting prospect of stopping an emboldened Democratic Party from passing the amnesty and energy tax initiatives they have long hungered to unleash on the American people.
While rallies serve their purpose rallies alone are not going to accomplish much if they continue to be ignored by the media and dismissed by our rulers who wave off such rhetoric as the rantings of an angry mob soon to be legislated into subservience.
If we are to save this nation the only remaining hope at this stage is to replace those who are now in power with people committed to preserving our Constitution and returning liberty to the people. If we do not get it right in November there will be no turning back the tide of tyranny that is sweeping across the nation.
The considerable anger directed at a Republican Party that in the past decade helped set the stage for the fix we find ourselves in today is not misplaced. But it is the refusal to set aside that anger and work for the common good that is threatening to give the Obamans the opening they need to consolidate their plans to turn this nation into a European-style socialist state.
One would think we could set aside our differences long enough to stop that from happening.
The logical next stage for the Tea Party & 912 Movement is to actively encourage and engage conservative candidates whether challengers or incumbents and replace those now in office who are anti-liberty and pro-big government with people who understand our Constitution and respect our values. The Marxists need to be swept from office.
The candidates we need cannot be found in the Democratic Party. The term moderate Democrat has no meaning in todays political environment.
Third party candidates who only act as spoilers handing elections to Democrats are not a viable option. There are some good Libertarians who would be deserving of support against a socialist candidate.
That leaves us with the Republican Party a tarnished brand to be sure but tarnished largely because those who are now protesting so vigorously chose not to be part of the process over the past decade. Continuing to refuse to back conservative Republican candidates is tantamount to turning the last decades disengagement into a suicidal Kabuki ritual.
After today the primaries are over. Its now time to get behind the nominees.
Supporting conservative candidates means much more that just saying Im voting for this guy. It means actively organizing for that candidate walking neighborhoods and knocking on doors manning phone banks having them as the focus of rallies rather than some B-list celebrities or Internet bloggers and pundits.
It means helping them raise the money necessary to dislodge a corrupt incumbent bent on retaining power. It means getting them elected.
The Tea Party & 912 Groups have the numbers to do this but need the leadership to marshal those forces and give them direction.
Ideological non-partisan purity can be a beautiful thing in its proper context and place. But this is political warfare for the soul of the nation not a debate put on by the League of Women Voters.
If the Democrats retain control of Congress in November of this year or on a more local level capture the statehouse in Austin the damage they will do to this nation and this state may well be irreversible.
If the Tea Party & 912 leaders cannot agree on that simple premise then the rallies to be held on April 15 2011 will not be celebrations of victory … but rather memorial services for a once great nation.
Adrian Murray is President of the Fort Worth 9-12 Project.
