The Polite Sacramento Tea Party

The tax day Tea Party held at the state capitol in Sacramento was a bustling event, attended by colorful, patriotic and well-mannered people from all walks of life. No angry outbursts… no fights… just thousands and thousands of very polite taxpaying citizens.

The “angry, bitter, militant tea party protestors” so commonly reported about in the mainstream and liberal media were nowhere to be found, at least during the hours I attended.

Families spread out blankets and picnics, retired couples brought their red and blue lawn chairs and thousands of Independents, Republicans and Democrats listened to the speakers, enthusiastically cheering at the anti-tax sound bites.

Political candidates held court off the the side of the capitol at tables and in tents. Ballot initiative campaigners were present as well, with volunteers handing out leaflets, fliers and gathering signatures.

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association made a splash with a Declaration of Taxpayer rights, signed by more than 15,000 “virtual” marchers via the HJTA website, delivered to Governor Schwarzenegger.

The signs were creative, funny, mad-as-hell and on-message. My favorite? As tough as the choice was, “Party like a bailed out banker” takes the cake.

The only tea party protestor that I saw was this fellow, who thinks that “Obama cares,” and that “90% of taxpayers got a tax cut in 2009.”

The aggressive network and liberal cable television media campaign to marginalize the Tea Parties with reports of extremists, militants, racists, and angry mob-like tea partiers, doesn’t appear to be working. It is apparent that liberals really don’t understand the Tea Party movement, or the motivation behind it. This group today was almost identical to last years’ — working men and women who took time out from their busy lives to demonstrate support for shrinking the size of government, reducing taxes and getting America back to its constitutional roots.

And then, they clean up after themselves, and go back to work.

– Katy Grimes