Thomas Friedman from the New York Times wrote an excellent opinion piece in today's paper about the alleged "Tea Kettle" movement. Knocking on the Tea Party, Friedman goes on to explain that while the movement may have the ability to affect votes, it does not have the ability to affect the American future. Why, pray tell? Because, and I quote:
The Tea Kettle movement can’t have a positive impact on the country because it has both misdiagnosed America’s main problem and hasn’t even offered a credible solution for the problem it has identified. How can you take a movement seriously that says it wants to cut government spending by billions of dollars but won’t identify the specific defense programs, Social Security, Medicare or other services it’s ready to cut — let alone explain how this will make us more competitive and grow the economy?
And how can you take seriously a movement that sat largely silent while the Bush administration launched two wars and a new entitlement, Medicare prescription drugs — while cutting taxes — but is now, suddenly, mad as hell about the deficit and won’t take it anymore from President Obama? Say what? Where were you folks for eight years?
The issues that upset the Tea Kettle movement — debt and bloated government — are actually symptoms of our real problem, not causes. They are symptoms of a country in a state of incremental decline and losing its competitive edge, because our politics has become just another form of sports entertainment, our Congress a forum for legalized bribery and our main lawmaking institutions divided by toxic partisanship to the point of paralysis
I found this to be a rather poignant observation, factual as well. We have heard the screams of "big government", "hands off my healthcare" and "cut taxes" but no actual plan, or way of coming about it. This signifies continual empty promises from a movement too busy being dramatic to formulate cohesive actions.
There is, however, a real Tea Party movement that may actually be of interest to the common-sense, forward thinking American. This ideology which permeates throughout moderate America is interested in long term results for the American future. A movement which recognizes over spending but realizes that we need investment for the future. Debt, as Friedman notes, is not necessarily the cause of our challenges; but simply the symptom of something worse.
I believe this misguided notion of "taking back America" (from what exactly is still TBD) is doomed from the beginning because they do not seek to actually fix the issues that plague us. Similarly, the Republican Party, in a tip-of-the-hat to their 1994 colleagues (and in some cases, themselves) gesture recently released the so-called "Pledge to America." A 21 page document similar to the "Contract for America" released during the '94 mid-term elections. As is par for the Republican course, the document outlines few actual plans for the future, but rather lofty goals to "cut spending and taxes." Jonathan Chait over at The New Republic summarizes the plan nicely when he wrote:
...the Republican program has consisted of a combination of specific, detailed plans to increase the deficit alongside vague assertions of intent to reduce it.
It's time America correct her myopic vision and begin planning for the remainder of the 21st century. Political bickering is the bane of this country's existence. I would challenge both parties and third party contenders to put on their big boy pants and actually come ready to play ball.
