MO Tea Party Candidates Identified

Where is Bob Parker? He must be waiting for the Right to Life and NRA endorsements. Oops, Jo Ann Emerson got those.

Many tea parties do not endorse candidates; mine does not. We are a heterogeneous group in terms of party affiliation. Like all tea party groups, we are fairly young, and at this point, prefer to concentrate on educational efforts by allowing candidates--especially those whom the media prefers to ignore--to speak to us, and answer questions we may have, as well as discussing some of the big ideas like, "What is the role of government?" "Where is wealth created?" "What is the free market?"

Education allows us to make up our own minds about political candidates, rather than relying on endorsements. Americans have always put great value on education!

National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) gave 161 of 176 Republican representatives in the 111th Congress a "100%" rating. That would be like 91% of the class getting an A+. I really don't know how discriminatory such a rating system is.

To Mr. Ron Gladney, aka VIKED

I have so missed you.

How has the spring been in raising funds for the Democrats? As a Democrat/Independent, I thank you for your efforts. Have not seen you around here for a while.

Barack, Nancy, Harry and I send our warmest wishes to you and yours.

As you know, Mr. Gladney, the NRA will pretty much only endorse an Incumbent in office as a matter of policy. There is also robust debate about who gets approval from Right to Life.

With fond wishes to you and yours, especially to your son in service to America.

I, for one, look forward to Jo Ann Emerson's debate with her primary challenger Bob Parker - oh sorry - too busy for the electorate, I guess.

See you in Church. I got a great Bible.

Regards,

Mike Glodo

What, does your name have to start with "G-L" to post on this item? You girls are somethin' else!

It's pretty clear that the "tea party" has no rules because it has no organization. As for endorsement in MO-8, for all we know they (whoever "they" is this week) could be patiently waiting to spring for Tommy Sowers, Rick Vandeven, or Larry Bill. These are all fine candidates who, like Bob Parker, haven't loaded up on PAC contributions from K Street. Nor have they shoveled pork about for years like most Democrat and Republican incumbents. Maybe you don't agree with any of them, but at least these outsiders are not sullied by Washington slime.

Given these tea party endorsement games, may I dare suggest the voters make up their own minds? Next Tuesday the obvious choice is outsider Bob Parker, but after that it's wait and see. One thing's for certain: in the fall our choices won't be limited and we won't have to share a pew with anyone whose name starts with those two snarky letters unless we want to.

DCisnot4me:

I too am in favor of the voters making up their own minds. They will have to be "self-starters" and seek real education about candidates, incumbent voting records, and issues. Do they have the discipline and will to do this? I personally have had enough of the "celebrity" endorsement chicanery to last me several lifetimes. This is why I have not encouraged my tea party group to engage in endorsements.

It is hard to combat a foe that cannot be defined. Since the major parties are insecure about whether the tea party groups are friend or foe, naturally these individuality-stifling national parties would like to co-opt the energy of the people in the tea party movements, swallowing them whole, and commissioning them in their cyborg army. All this would NOT be accompanied by any willingness on their part to devolve any power down to the people. Conventions would continue to be completely scripted affairs, with credentials/rules/platform committee meetings occurring in secret and shut off from any perceived "insurgents."