Tea Party Protest

How Do You Like Your Tea?

By Mike Hoaglan

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Lake Havasu City, AZ (Cable Muse Network) -- April 16th 2009. A crowd of 700 people (police estimate) turned out for the first “TEA Day” yesterday in Lake Havasu City, located on the Colorado River in Arizona. This group clearly wanted their tea without a heavy dose of governing. Protestors gathered with signs on the London Bridge, with speakers from within the community, absent of elected officials. The biggest issue was perceived “bank bailouts.”

The majority of the speeches were not focused on taxes, nor the Republican or Democrat parties but the Constitution, particularly, the 1st, 2nd, 9th and 10th amendments. Other issues included government debt, irresponsibility, excessive size of government both at the Federal and State level, and the Federal Reserve.

"We'd prefer to have people in [the government] who actually respect the Constitution and realize they work for us. I will keep trying to vote the correct people into office and get the correct result," one of the speakers told Cable Muse Network. An unknown young lady said, "All I want is our hired help in Washington to abide by our Constitution. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely... I say fire them all - now!”

Jeff Stapleton, Interim Communications Director for the Arizona Democratic Party, was contacted for response to the state’s “Tea Parties” and Cable Muse Network was referred by him to a prepared statement made yesterday:

Organizers of these events assume that the President is unconcerned about taxes and government spending. These assumptions are false. The President has signed the ‘Make Work Pay’ tax cut, which will provide an $800 tax cut to working families. In addition, the President is committed to cutting the deficit in half by the end of his first term.

As far as whether these protests are warranted, these protestors are simply opposed to President Obama and will be protesting him regardless of what ideas he presents. The people promoting and organizing these events are the same small, vocal minority inspired by the Republican leaders like Rush Limbaugh and Karl Rove. The vast majority of Americans support the President's efforts to turn around the sputtering economy his Administration inherited.

Attempts for an additional statement from the Arizona Democratic Party were unsuccessful prior to publication. This article will be updated if the office wishes to respond.

Unlike the Tea Party in Washington DC, (eventually “shut down” by the secret service because a viable threat), the gathering in Lake Havasu City was peaceful. Police were on hand as to help with parking.

The Tea Party demonstration was considered a large crowd to Lake Havasu City which has a population of 56,603 (2006 census). There was a similar size gathering about 10 miles away in Bullhead City.

Cable Muse Network reporter Ben Cable contributed to this article from Phoenix, AZ