# What is the point of the Tea Party? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 7, 2010, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038 "2010-02-07T17:06:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![BrightNShiny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@BrightNShiny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrightNShiny)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2010, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/41 "2010-02-08T21:07:17Z")
> [@Frank\_apisa](#): > > Sometimes the fox doesn’t look like he wants to get at the rabbit; sometimes the fox doesn’t even look like he notices the rabbit; and sometimes the fox seems to be heading away from the rabbit. > > But, BightNShiny…the fox always wants to get at the rabbit; and the fox always notices the rabbit; and the fox is heading toward the rabbit even when he seems to be walking away. > > Ya know what I mean? I have no idea what you mean. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2010, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/42 "2010-02-08T21:24:14Z")
> [@BrightNShiny](#): > > I have no idea what you mean. Me neither. In this metaphor, who is the fox and who is the rabbit? ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2010, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/43 "2010-02-08T23:41:53Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > I think Icerigger whooshed you but good, Finn. He’s been around a long time and I don’t remember him every sincerely espousing that kind of opinion. I’m guessing he was being sarcastic. Yes you are correct, I was just making a point of how hateful the politics has become in some people. These tea-baggers use much the same rhetoric as the Cesspool crowd and with many threads on antisemitism I wanted to educate myself about the David Duke mindset by monitoring their blogs and pod-casts. It is really morbidly fascinating, they have their own alternative history where the Jews are literally behind every evil in Western history. What bothers me the most is the convergence of some of their views in the mainstream conservative circles or at least what passes for it nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/44 "2010-02-09T00:07:10Z")
Ah, my apologies then. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/45 "2010-02-09T01:42:13Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Me neither. In this metaphor, who is the fox and who is the rabbit? Capitalize “fox” and you may get an idea. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BrightNShiny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@BrightNShiny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrightNShiny)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/46 "2010-02-09T01:46:54Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Capitalize “fox” and you may get an idea. 😉 Is the rabbit Air America? ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/47 "2010-02-09T02:17:42Z")
> [@BrightNShiny](#): > > Is the rabbit Air America? Is one of them Hitler and the other Obama? I’m confused. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/48 "2010-02-09T02:24:26Z")
> [@BrightNShiny](#): > > Is the rabbit Air America? I dunno. Brer Rabbit always gets the best of Brer Fox. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/49 "2010-02-09T02:24:47Z")
I’ve never figured it out, to be honest, but the English seem to really love the things… -XT ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/50 "2010-02-09T02:36:06Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > I’ve never figured it out, to be honest, but the English seem to really love the things… > > -XT [Jugged.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jugging) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2010, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/51 "2010-02-09T02:53:00Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > [Jugged.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jugging) I am going to puke. When will I learn to not click you people’s links? ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/52 "2010-02-10T02:56:29Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > I am going to puke. When will I learn to not click you people’s links? Honestly, with a lead-in like “Jugged” it could have been a lot worse. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2010, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/53 "2010-02-11T12:50:41Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > It’s a fairly common thing. A group on the left will attempt to form a separate party, even though they should realize that their beliefs are so far to the left that they have no chance of being elected. When has this happened to the left? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2010, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/54 "2010-02-11T15:31:21Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > When has this happened to the left? [Peace and Freedom Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_and_freedom_party) [Citizens Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizens_Party_(United_States)) [Green Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Party_of_the_United_States) [New Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Party_(United_States)) [Working Families Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working_Families_Party) [Labor Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Party_(United_States_-_1996)) And practically every socialist party ever in America. Of course, some of these have won **some** elections – even the Socialist Party of America did, in its day – but none have ever seen even a glimpse of major-party status on the horizon. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/55 "2010-02-11T15:36:39Z")
I would be willing to bet if you added the attention that all these leftist parties had over the last 50 years, it wouldn’t come close to matching what attention the Teabaggers have gotten in the past six months. Nobody takes these third parties seriously and they draw a statistically insignificant number of votes. ---
**Author:** ![rivulus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rivulus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rivulus)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/56 "2010-02-11T16:01:43Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Of course, some of these have won **some** elections – even the Socialist Party of America did, in its day – but none have ever seen even a glimpse of major-party status on the horizon. Nothing like the power of the NDP, huh? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2010, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/57 "2010-02-11T16:50:13Z")
> [@rivulus](#): > > Nothing like the power of the NDP, huh? 😃 The NDP in Canada **has** been a major party, controlling provincial governments at some periods and always maintaining a significant presence in Parliament, but has never gotten close to forming a national government – not even as a coalition partner, AFAIK. But left-wing third parties in America never get even **that** far. In fact, the last third-party movement of any kind to achieve that in America was the Republicans, and they were founded in 1854. Once again, if you don’t like that, support [FairVote](http://www.fairvote.org/) and [proportional representation.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proportional_representation) ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2010, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/58 "2010-02-11T18:32:06Z")
I seem to have to say something like this every time I post to a thread that’s remotely close to a controversial issue: When I claim that certain parties were too far to the right or left to be electable, I’m not asserting that their opinions are utterly repugnant to me. I’m saying that they are unelectable, that’s all. I have no intention of discussing the quallity of their positions. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2010, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/59 "2010-02-12T19:25:07Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Precisely because it’s such a useless idea under the U.S. election laws, new parties don’t get formed very often. This is mostly a rhetorical trick. Someone will claim that they are going to form a new party. The rest of the party that they currently belong to will sometimes slightly change their policies to bring that person back into the fold so that he doesn’t screw up the next election. And that craven need to keep the voters in the fold actually makes this tactic more dangerous in a two-party state, not less. In a proportional system, the Tea Party (or its like) would get the votes of those to whom they appeal. In a two-party system, they can pull a party with a slim majority toward them to some variable degree, or even gain seats to them alone in districts where their “fellow traveler” party is dominant enough. And that could be just dominant enough to need [del]Nazi[/del] fringe votes,[sup]\*[/sup] or so dominant that the fringe is a serious part of the conversation–a majority of the majority of the voters though not the majority. [sup]\*[/sup] Well, that’s sort of like what the Nazi’s did… ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2010, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038/60 "2010-02-12T19:33:45Z")
The Tea Party was never intended to be anything but a way to rally people of a certain stripe into the GOP while ensuring that the GOP did not compromise in a moderate direction to gain votes. There is no betrayal in Sarah Palin taking over. It was founded by movement conservative former GOP congressman Dick Armey. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-the-tea-party/528038.md?page=4)