Main Street Journal: On the River: Memphis Tea

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The following article is taken from the March 2010 issue of the Main Street Journal. Click “Subscribe Online” above to start your subscription.

Memphis Tea
By: Mick Wright

The first anniversary of the tea party movement has arrived, although it’s difficult to say exactly when. Did it all begin when Rick Santelli called for a Chicago Tea Party on CNBC last February? Or were the nation-wide Tax Day rallies in April the movement’s launching point, even though these were preceded by scattered tax protests around the country early last year and, obviously, planning meetings?

More importantly, will the tea party movement last? What is it all about, anyway? Are we witnessing the formation of a new political party?

The answers to these questions are elusive, perhaps even to the movement’s various leaders. This is particularly true here in the Memphis area, where the tea party movement has separated into two primary factions, each with its own unique leadership, objectives, meetings and agenda.

The first of these, the Mid-South Tea Party, recently attracted about 80 activists who packed a resource room at the Cordova library for the group’s monthly meeting. Mark Herr, Lynn Moss, Jim Tomasik and others presented updates on the progress of the club’s various committees, including education, outreach, events and elections. In addition to rallies scheduled for April 15, July 4 and September 12, they are planning a state-wide convention in May and a “Constitution camp” for children this summer.

A second group, the Memphis Tea Party, was instrumental in last month’s National Tea Party Convention, which was held in Nashville and featured keynote speaker Sarah Palin. Founder Mark Skoda, who joined Herr, Tomasik and others on stage at a rally last year, told The Commercial Appeal his group was concerned more with “legislative action, candidate development and winning elections.” Toward that end, Skoda’s newly formed Ensuring Liberty PAC will fund conservative candidates in Tennessee and the surrounding states. Skoda also hosts a radio program on KWAM 990.

What the various tea party groups have in common, both locally and across the country, is their devotion to limited government, fiscal responsibility and individual liberties. They advocate lower taxes, reduced spending, and a greater adherence to the Constitution and our nation’s founding documents.

But tea party activists hold different ideas about how to restore these principles. The very rugged individualism they espouse is one of the qualities that makes them prone to division and averse to cooperation and compromise. In addition, their idealism and lack of experience can leave them vulnerable to criticism or blind to the realities of politics.

Still, for a movement that’s just a year old, and that was thrust into the spotlight in its infancy, the tea parties are gathering a massive amount of sway.

In December, a NBC/Wall Street Journal poll found that the Tea Party movement is more popular (41% favorable) than both Democrats (35%) and Republicans (28%).

Politicians realize the tea parties may be key to electoral victory. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) recently celebrated the one year anniversary of the Tea Party movement, calling them “great patriots.”

And last month Shelby County Commissioner George Flinn, a Republican candidate for U.S. House in Tennessee’s 8th district, told the Mid-South Tea Party, “I want to represent you, I want to be your voice in Congress.”

Now the tea parties must determine how to navigate this testy relationship with the Republican Party, which proclaims many of the same conservative ideals, but often fails to put them into practice. The fate of our nation may well hinge on their decision.

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