Weak tea? Partiers fear fallout

[brooklynite]

from Politico:

Ready and eager to transition from opposing health care reform to targeting the members of Congress who made it happen, tea party organizers find themselves grappling instead with reports of ugly behavior at this weekend’s protests in Washington that could stymie efforts to broaden the movement’s appeal.

While the thousands of tea partiers who thronged the Capitol grounds on short notice in advance of Sunday’s House healthcare vote was proof of the movement’s continuing energy, their impact was undercut by accounts of racist and homophobic epithets directed at Democratic lawmakers by a handful of individuals among this weekend’s crowd.

Tea party organizers have struggled in recent months to clamp down on fringe elements that have sprung up around – and sometimes within – the movement, including white supremacists and conspiracy theorists who believe that the government played a role in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks (“truthers”) or that President Barack Obama was not born in the United States and is therefore ineligible to be president (“birthers”).

...snip...

“Tattoos last forever,” said Brandon, quoting his boss, FreedomWorks chairman and former House Republican Leader Dick Armey. “If the movement gets tattooed as at all sympathetic to those (racist and homophobic) views, I won’t want to be involved in it anymore. It’s very distracting not only to our side, but also to the debate and the country.”

tattoos last forever, and so does video.....

[NJmaverick]

1. Their movement always had racist and bigoted undertones

it was only the anger and desperation that exposed it. They can no more control their racist members than the KKK could.

[Walk away]

2. The republican talking heads are now insisting that the 'baggers are....

made up of a "cross section" of American politics. They claim that they are republicans and Independents.and Libertarians.

If I were an Independent I would start calling myself a Democrat today. How embarrassing!

[Richardo]

3. ...and now, they're smashing in the windows of Dem representatives' offices.

Has a ring of familiarity to it.

[MattBaggins]

4. No shit... And we still have media idiots covering for them

They were doing this shit all the way back during the campaign season. The Tea Party people are the PUMAs, the "inadequate black male", and the "I think he is an Arab" crowds we saw at McCain/Palin rallies. They were ugly back then and they are still ugly now. The Tea Baggers are about hatred and nothing more.

[LeftHander]

5. Tea Baggin Nut Job D-Bag haters...

Oh!? you mean the citizen protesters....I thought it was the Republicans on the hill...

[Blix Krieg]

6. They are their own worst enemy

I have always said "Let Them Rave"
Now their pathetic little chickens
are coming home to roost. I have
always called them Brownshirt
street riff raff of the 1st order.

Let the jackals howl. It's only their own necks on the block in the end.

[BurtWorm]

7. Struggled to clamp down....right!

I can just imagine the conversations behind that struggle.

"Our racist and homophobe brothers have so much gosh darned energy and enthusiasm. I wish we could bottle it!"

[leftstreet]

8. The politicians & M$M really don't need them right now

In fact, they've got to get rid of them before the Immigration reform fiasco heats up

[get the red out]

9. They will be very entertaining

They will be quite entertaining during that process. I believe the sick underbelly of the Republican party will be even more fully exposed!
:popcorn:

[FSogol]

10. Now Dick Armey is going to start worrying about his reputation?

:rofl:

[Motown_Johnny]

13. worried about his profit margin

[GoCubsGo]

11. Check out the comments at the Politico link

They was infiltrated, dontcha know! LOL! The excuses and attempts at reversing the blame by some of them are just pathetic.

[brooklynite]

12. Now, where would Socialist, Muslim, Eastern Elites.....

...find overweight white guys with southern accents to infiltrate the crowd?

[DFW]

14. One of the nut cases sure didn't waste any time

One of them broke into the Tuscon office of a Congresswoman who voted for the bill. The coward did some destruction, but
was unwilling to confront live people. Maybe if the cops catch him, he will resist arrest and then need some of that
health care he is so against.

[Dappleganger]

15. You reap what you sow. nt