Activists of tea party not so different
As the days move closer and closer to the Republican Senate primary vote, political tempers are running high and all the hot-button issues are getting thrown around.
But there is a movement afoot. And it’s gathering steam quickly.
It’s called the tea party movement. And it seems to conjure up interesting images.
Browse the Internet for a few minutes and you’ll find plenty of people likening tea party activists to monsters, lunatics and morons.
But the tea party is none of these. It’s actually just a group composed of mostly sane, normal people who are fed up with government.
Richard Behney, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, is a plumber from Fishers and a tea party activist.
( Just a side note, go to the U.S. Senate debate on Monday. If you need a reason, see Brian Howey’s column on page 3.)
Notice how Behney is a plumber? That’s pretty normal. But there’s more. Not only is Behney a tea party activist, he’s the one who brought the party to Indianapolis. I had the chance to meet him last week and he shared the story we me. He went up to Chicago for a large tea party rally. He and his family were among the first volunteers to show up at the rally.
They were approached by Eric Odom, the event’s organizer, to bring the tea party to In- diana. That simple request has turned into the Tax Day Tea Party, which has been a huge success for the past two years.
A normal guy. Bringing the tea party to Indiana.
According to a poll recently released by The New York Times, 18 percent of Americans consider themselves activists of the tea party. The story went on to say that they are mostly Republicans.
Behney disagrees, saying there is a common bond that holds tea party activists together. “It’s not a party thing at all,” Behney said.
“Just folks who have a feeling in their gut that there’s something wrong with our country and the direction it’s headed. It truly is a grass-roots movement.”
And they’re mostly normal.
One look at Behney’s background will show how normal he is:
- Born in Dayton, Ohio.
- Went to college; dropped out to pursue a music career.
- Started two businesses from his home.
Nothing in the list about time in a mental institution or working as a mad scientist’s assistant. He’s a fairly normal guy.
If you’ve been paying attention so far, you’ve noticed words like “mostly” and “fairly.” Despite how normal Behney is, he, and all other tea party activists, are prone to slip-ups.
While addressing Second Amendment Patriots in Evansville this past winter, Behney called for new faces in politics during 2010. If he didn’t see new faces, he was going to “[clean] my guns and [get] ready for a big show.”
Oops.
In the story by The New York Times, several tea party advocates refer to themselves as “angry.” We all say things in anger we don’t mean.
Behney later said he meant the comment as a path where America could go if we aren’t careful.
So he made a mistake. Overall, he’s still above the normal marker on my scale. And so are the other tea party activists.
It’s easy to simply judge the tea party group based on what we see or hear. But it’s not until you get to know them that you realize they’re just like us.
