In a time when the State of Illinois has reached an all time financial low, it is pushing out state grants to build train/bus stations where they aren’t needed. The state is dangling a $6 million grant in front of my hometown, Quincy, IL to build a new station. Coincidentally, the state owes almost that exact amount of money to our local school system. Building multi-million dollar train stations while school districts, hospitals, and non-profits are threatened to the point of closing their doors is, well, insane.

But, I digress. A ll politics is local and the ‘leaders’ of the City of Quincy would rather take the $6 million grant than see someone else get it. That’s nuts! The high road doesn’t seem to play a role in this conversation. Just over a month ago I went to the Quincy City Council and asked them to return the money to the state and to send a message that this kind of spending in tough economic times was preposterous. I further explained that this was an ethical issue, not a political one.

It seems the concern of our local government is more about the disposition of the “free money”, than the ethical dilemma that such a project represents in dire economic times.

Logical people would see this as an opportunity to let the State of Illinois know that grants (free money) should positively affect the communities it is trying to reach by ending up where the existing needs lie, like paying delinquent payments to our schools, for example.

Carol Knowles, State Comptroller Dan Hyne’s Spokewoman was recently quoted as follows:

“Illinois ended the year in the worst fiscal position in it’s history,”

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As a co-founder of the Quincy Tea Party I was appalled at the lack of social responsibility and restraint Mr. Jealous displayed in his remarks regarding the Tea Party Movement. I found myself becoming increasingly irritated when he began his political spin and roll tactics to distance himself from his statements. Motivational speaking can backfire if it is at the expense of someone else. Especially if that someone else is 20,000,000 of your countrymen.

But alas, the truth will set us free. You see, Mr. Jealous ignited the single largest surge in Tea Party membership in the movement’s history. The current membership explosion has even surpassed the surge that followed the passage of the Health Control Law. I was amazed by the email and telephone traffic generated by his unfounded remarks. I feel as though we should pay Mr. Jealous a consulting fee or give him some sort of recruiting award.

Mr. Jealous seems to be unaware that you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool the Tea Party ever. This grassroots group of Americans has been abused, ridiculed, slandered, and hacked on by every form of progressive, democrat and leftist organization in existence from the day it was born. The Tea Party can take a verbal punch better than any candidate or spin doctor the left can muster. We are the grassroots equivalent of Muhammad Ali. The Tea Party is the classiest and most resilient group that has assembled in this country since the Civil Rights Movement. That being said the Tea Party Movement is about as likely to give up, as Dr. Martin Luther King was during the height of the Civil Rights Movement.

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It has only been a matter of weeks since Neil Cavuto interviewed me to share my opinion regarding Michael Steele’s sudden interest in the Tea Party Movement. It appears Michael Steele is showing up with candy and flowers this Valentine’s Day. Using my experience as a Tea Party organizer I explained that the RNC was on probation and that I felt confident that the Republicans would have to stand up and show their outrage over spending, the trampling of our constitution, and a myriad of other issues before their status would change in the eyes of the American people. Republicans have often played the helpless victim while hardworking Americans (the true victims of this governmental meltdown) stand and fight.

At the same time I warned of the impending disaster that would result in the creation of a third party. To use some of the language popular with the current administration this would be a Tea Party equivalent to the “Nuclear Option.” The result would be a split vote that would turn the keys over to liberals for yet another term.

Before I go further I must clarify that Americans for Prosperity, 9/12 groups, and in many cases Tea Parties share the same doctrine and values. There are thousands of these groups that are autonomous and effective organizations in their own right. I respect these organizations and fully understand the importance of working with them as separate, viable entities in our fight for liberty.

Under the Constitution we band together as individual voters that govern individually with our ballots, this is our only legal tie. Grassroots voters harness power via their collective ballots, which captures the attention of organizations like the RNC. The RNC has a role similar to that of a labor union speaking on behalf of Republican candidates. Collective bargaining is the RNC’s desired result, as they want to harness the power of the massive grassroots organizing effort undertaken by so many Americans and their votes. We don’t have to negotiate with the RNC.

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As a member of a very successful Tea Party in Quincy, Illinois it is my distinct honor and privilege to offer my thanks and congratulations to this astroturf response to the tea parties. This hard hitting website has taken the MSNBC format to a new level. Hit us again guys, because while you spend never-ending union dollars attacking Tea Parties, we are repairing the change you said we could believe in, one candidate at a time.

This tiny group of Tea Bashers says its mission is “To prevent the Tea Party’s dangerous ideas from gaining legislative traction.” You might want to watch something other than the mainstream media. In case you haven’t heard, we have already gained legislative traction, which I’ll venture a guess that this was the reason for the emergency birth and delivery of your premature website.

We can’t think of a better way for organized labor to spend its time and money. I am so thrilled with your approach I may donate to your cause myself.

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After reading Warner Todd Huston’s article, Tea Parties: The Biggest Mistake We Could Make in 2010, I was incredulous.  It seems misguided to suggest top down management in a time when big companies, big organizations, and big government have received bailouts after spending like drunken thieves or failing in the marketplace. Under what premise can anyone make the case that the solution to our nation’s dilemma is a big organization, especially a Big Tea Party? In all cases big leadership has resulted in big corruption, which is at the root of almost every issue before us.

Since the onset of ‘change we can all believe in’, politicians at all levels seem to constantly point to small businesses as our hope for economic recovery. In an era of “too big to fail,” it would seem obvious that people, regardless of party affiliation, could agree that bigger is not better. I haven’t heard anyone speak of the positive impact that CEO-led mega-banks, automakers, or the Fannies and Freddies will have on economic recovery.

The idea that the grassroots tea party movement should become a third political party is counter productive and borders on the ludicrous. Tea Parties are about government accountability, not joining partisan politics in the corruption and incompetence that threatens American liberty. Our City Councils, State Legislatures, and Congress work for us, and it is high time that we reminded them of this and brought them into the fold.

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