The Decline of the Tea Party

So yesterday was the official tax day this year.  Usually on April 15th, the day taxes are due the tea Party over the last few years have held rallies across the United States.  This year the difference is in the declining numbers of their members showing up at the rallies.  Is the Tea Party movement dead or is it that the sane members have seen just how insane some of their Tea Party leaders are.  Can you say Bachmann?  Or is it they are starting to see that it wasn't a grass roots movement at all, but a heavily funded by big business distraction to the real problems this country faces. 

Let's look at the numbers who showed up.  In Orange county less than fifty people, in Chicago it was several hundred.  In Concord New Hampshire four Republican Presidential hopefuls were headlining that gathering including Tim Pawlenty and Rick Santorum and the crowd estimate was around three hundred people.  In Columbia South Carolina, a heavy Republican state, their new Governor Nikki Hailey along with Michele Bachmann were the headliners and had a showing of around three hundred people.  Significant because the tax day Tea Party gathering there two years ago drew around three thousand people.  So what has happened that their members have lost interest? 

One thing I can say is that Wisconsin Governor Walker has energized the Democratic base the way I have never seen.  In fact when I marched up in Madison in early March the crowd was estimated at just over a hundred thousand.  As someone who was there I would say that figure is pretty close to reality.  Speaking of Madison, it had one of the largest turnouts for a Tea Party rally yesterday.  Most likely because their headliner was Sarah Palin.  The crowd was estimated at around six thousand people.  The catch to that was that many people had signs against Palin and the Tea Party.  In fact the local ABC affiliate said a solid core of Tea Party people were flanked on all sides by counter protesters.  The other interesting thing was who paid for Palin to be there. 

I have said all along that the Tea Party was not a grass roots movement but heavily funded by big business including the Koch brothers.  If you look at the picture you see Palin speaking from a podium that has a banner "I am AFP".  AFP is short for Americans for Prosperity and their Chairman is David Koch.  AFP does not disclose how much money individual doners give them but  a conservative estimate is that the Koch brothers have given over twenty million dollars to AFP and its predecessor Citizens for a Sound Economy.  Through loopholes in campaign finance laws it is estimated that the Koch brothers funneled almost five million dollars into Scott Walkers campaign. 

Two things I wonder about are why would average Americans with everyday problems relate themselves to one of the richest families in the world (Koch).  While these guys are flying around in their private jets they are conning average Americans into believing we should all be working more hours for less money and benefits so the Governor can give tax breaks back to them (The Kochs).  And finally why is it that the Republicans in congress are so afraid of their base (Tea Party) no matter how small it gets, yet the Democrats in congress loath their base, no matter how big it gets?