NYT: Tea Parties Forever by Krugman

[alexey]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/13/opinion/13krugman.html?_r=1

This is a column about Republicans — and I’m not sure I should even be writing it.

Today’s G.O.P. is, after all, very much a minority party. It retains some limited ability to obstruct the Democrats, but has no ability to make or even significantly shape policy.

Beyond that, Republicans have become embarrassing to watch. And it doesn’t feel right to make fun of crazy people. Better, perhaps, to focus on the real policy debates, which are all among Democrats.

But here’s the thing: the G.O.P. looked as crazy 10 or 15 years ago as it does now. That didn’t stop Republicans from taking control of both Congress and the White House. And they could return to power if the Democrats stumble. So it behooves us to look closely at the state of what is, after all, one of our nation’s two great political parties.

One way to get a good sense of the current state of the G.O.P., and also to see how little has really changed, is to look at the “tea parties” that have been held in a number of places already, and will be held across the country on Wednesday. These parties — antitaxation demonstrations that are supposed to evoke the memory of the Boston Tea Party and the American Revolution — have been the subject of considerable mockery, and rightly so.

But everything that critics mock about these parties has long been standard practice within the Republican Party.

Thus, President Obama is being called a “socialist” who seeks to destroy capitalism. Why? Because he wants to raise the tax rate on the highest-income Americans back to, um, about 10 percentage points less than it was for most of the Reagan administration. Bizarre.

But the charge of socialism is being thrown around only because “liberal” doesn’t seem to carry the punch it used to. And if you go back just a few years, you find top Republican figures making equally bizarre claims about what liberals were up to. Remember when Karl Rove declared that liberals wanted to offer “therapy and understanding” to the 9/11 terrorists?

Then there are the claims made at some recent tea-party events that Mr. Obama wasn’t born in America, which follow on earlier claims that he is a secret Muslim. Crazy stuff — but nowhere near as crazy as the claims, during the last Democratic administration, that the Clintons were murderers, claims that were supported by a campaign of innuendo on the part of big-league conservative media outlets and figures, especially Rush Limbaugh.

Speaking of Mr. Limbaugh: the most impressive thing about his role right now is the fealty he is able to demand from the rest of the right. The abject apologies he has extracted from Republican politicians who briefly dared to criticize him have been right out of Stalinist show trials. But while it’s new to have a talk-radio host in that role, ferocious party discipline has been the norm since the 1990s, when Tom DeLay, the House majority leader, became known as “The Hammer” in part because of the way he took political retribution on opponents.

Going back to those tea parties, Mr. DeLay, a fierce opponent of the theory of evolution — he famously suggested that the teaching of evolution led to the Columbine school massacre — also foreshadowed the denunciations of evolution that have emerged at some of the parties.

Last but not least: it turns out that the tea parties don’t represent a spontaneous outpouring of public sentiment. They’re AstroTurf (fake grass roots) events, manufactured by the usual suspects. In particular, a key role is being played by FreedomWorks, an organization run by Richard Armey, the former House majority leader, and supported by the usual group of right-wing billionaires. And the parties are, of course, being promoted heavily by Fox News.

But that’s nothing new, and AstroTurf has worked well for Republicans in the past. The most notable example was the “spontaneous” riot back in 2000 — actually orchestrated by G.O.P. strategists — that shut down the presidential vote recount in Florida’s Miami-Dade County.

So what’s the implication of the fact that Republicans are refusing to grow up, the fact that they are still behaving the same way they did when history seemed to be on their side? I’d say that it’s good for Democrats, at least in the short run — but it’s bad for the country.

For now, the Obama administration gains a substantial advantage from the fact that it has no credible opposition, especially on economic policy, where the Republicans seem particularly clueless.

But as I said, the G.O.P. remains one of America’s great parties, and events could still put that party back in power. We can only hope that Republicans have moved on by the time that happens.

[Tulane Skins Fan]

It would be nice if instead of tea parties, republicans gave ideas how to fix the economic problems... as opposed to just saying this won't work and i'm mad.

[IHOPSkins]

"Last but not least: it turns out that the tea parties don’t represent a spontaneous outpouring"

BS

There are 5....count'em 5 in my county alone

Hit Piece

[PeterMP]

"Last but not least: it turns out that the tea parties don’t represent a spontaneous outpouring"

BS

There are 5....count'em 5 in my county alone

Hit Piece

I agree 100%. That's a great piece of evidence. Clearly, there is no way that the current Republican appartus could manage to stage 5 different, but related events, in a single county at the same time. They really are that inept.

I'm 100% convinced.

[#98QBKiller]

Lol to "AstroTurf Events."

[Art Monk Fan]

He writes as if the left has absolutely no crack pots of their own, have no formal organizations in place to plan and coordinate protests, and have no wealthy benefactors behind any of their causes.

What world does he live in?

[Rdskn4Lyf21]

I agree 100%. That's a great piece of evidence. Clearly, there is no way that the current Republican appartus could manage to stage 5 different, but related events, in a single county at the same time. They really are that inept.

I'm 100% convinced.

:rotflmao:

They are that inept. Anyone who thinks they could organize hundreds/thousands of these things is only fooling themselves. I'll be heading to one here in a few hours. I'll report on the nutjobs

[IHOPSkins]

....They really are that inept.......

Saudi Bow to you

[SkinzFoLife]

Fox News would have you believe this is a grass roots movement and they deny promoting it (cough bull**** cough). Turns out the Tea Parties are backed by corporate lobbyists.

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/04/09/lobbyists-planning-teaparties/

Fox News put on blast for promoting Tea Parties, they deny it, then proceed to promote it 2 minutes later. Awesome!

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/04/14/fbn-tea-parties/

[81artmonk]

Last but not least: it turns out that the tea parties don’t represent a spontaneous outpouring of public sentiment. They’re AstroTurf (fake grass roots) events, manufactured by the usual suspects. In particular, a key role is being played by FreedomWorks, an organization run by Richard Armey, the former House majority leader, and supported by the usual group of right-wing billionaires. And the parties are, of course, being promoted heavily by Fox News.

Firstly, he's so full of it. Why do the left have to manufacture stories about things like this?? THis isn't fake, it's a true grass roots upswelling.

Regradless, his comments are ridiculous!! I suppose since he is so concerned about right wing billionares supporting this, that he would be just as outraged about the george soros's running the left wing of the other side.

I wasn't aware that fox news was in the business of promoting large events? I thought that they were a news organization which reported events like this....news to me

My question is simple, why is the other side so upset or scared that americans are fed up and rising up and saying they're mad as hell and not gonna take it anymore??

[IHOPSkins]

.....why is the other side so upset or scared that americans are fed up and rising up....

The Left only supports free speach if it agrees with their agenda

How often does WORKING AMERICA take a day off to protest?

That Scares the LEFT

[#98QBKiller]

Why do the left have to manufacture stories about things like this??

This isn't a story, it's an opinion piece.

[81artmonk]

It would be nice if instead of tea parties, republicans gave ideas how to fix the economic problems... as opposed to just saying this won't work and i'm mad.

We need to distinguish between to very different things. First these are americans who are mad. Not politicians, and secondly I wasn't aware that the average citizen could impliment policy.

[Predicto]

The people participating in these events are sincere, but this is not simply a "true grass roots movement." There appears to be a lot of astroturfing going on.

Of course, astroturfing is not necessarily illegitimate. Sometime events that are organized or coordinated or promoted behind the scenes still can reflect a genuine popular sentiment.

[SnyderShrugged]

To be fair (and I cant stand krugman whatsoever), he has a somewhat legitimate point that there is GOP establishment machine involved in the tea parties.

The Tea parties started as simple, grassroots organizing and then were coopted by some of the power players.

I wish they had stayed out, because in my heart I believe that there are credible and legitimate folks there that simply have had enough and are ready to move out of the silent bubble they have been in for years.

My main wish is that they had seen the light way back in the primaries when it was very evident that the big government GOP neocons had all the control.

Day late and multiple trillions of dollars short my fellow "conservatives".

On a positive note, maybe we are actually seeing enough support to actually affect some change back to where federal powers are supposed to be, but I dont think for an instant that these recent protests will impact much beyond awareness.

[SkinzFoLife]

We need to distinguish between to very different things. First these are americans who are mad. Not politicians, and secondly I wasn't aware that the average citizen could impliment policy.

Where was there anger for the last 8 ****ing years that put us in this deficit? Bush turned a surplus into a deficit and didn't try to do **** to fix the economy. How do you propose to fix a deficit? A ****ing Tea Party sponsored by coporate lobbyists??

[IHOPSkins]

The people participating in these events are sincere, but this is not a "true grass roots movement." There appears to be a lot of astroturfing......

Politicians are taking advantage of an audience

I won't be going because Rohrabacher is there

I'm going for the T-Shirts.......

[SkinzFoLife]

Go to thinkprogress.org for the real story on the backing of this so called "grass roots" movement. Just ridiculous. These are the same retards who blindly backed a president who made them afraid to walk around their own country.

[IHOPSkins]

........maybe we are actually seeing enough support to actually affect some change back to where federal powers are supposed to be, but I dont think for an instant that these recent protests will impact much beyond awareness.

I think it has already started to influence the Country Club Repubs

But

Will this influence only be "throwing us (conservatives) a bone"?

I plan on donating to Spectres Opponent in his next race.....the Country Clubs will take note

[SkinzFoLife]

This is so stupid. The American patriots were protesting taxation without representation, there is none of that here.

Most people just got a tax break thanks to Obama and the Congress. The only people who will have their taxes increase are the upper tax group, and that won’t happen until Bush’s tax cuts expire. It is much ado about nothing. I think it is an excuse for the Republican base to whine about Democrats, Obama, gay people, brown and black people, etc.

[SnyderShrugged]

Go to thinkprogress.org for the real story on the backing of this so called "grass roots" movement. Just ridiculous. These are the same retards who blindly backed a president who made them afraid to walk around their own country.

hardly an unbiased representation my friend.

you do realize that each individual gathering this week may have been planned by different organizations and groups dont you?

Not all of these folks are in the neocon camp, in fact i'd challenge that many are dead set against them just as dead set against the big government agenda of the current administration.

[IHOPSkins]

.....These are the same retards who blindly backed a president....

"Meet the New Boss

Same as the old Boss"

[SkinzFoLife]

The main difference is this president actually has a plan

[SnyderShrugged]

I think it has already started to influence the Country Club Repubs

But

Will this influence only be "throwing us (conservatives) a bone"?

I plan on donating to Spectres Opponent in his next race.....the Country Clubs will take note

I'm proud of you! Get him out of office!

I do, unfortunately, think its a "throw the bone" approach to co-opting true conservatives and other lovers of liberty.

I think the influence on the country clubbers only goes as far as them maintaining a power base and not developing the proper principles that they are supposedly supporting.

[Cooked Crack]

What exactly are they protesting? I see signs about government spending, taxes, ACORN, socialism, Maobama, illegal immigrants. Also why are people who voted for bailouts allowed to speak at some of these events?