The presidential election is over and despite the outcome, the president of the Lehigh Valley Tea Party said her organization will "keep on keeping on."
For the past two Saturdays, Tea Party members were out rallying the troops in Allentown and Bethlehem to get people out to vote.
Barb Walters, the chairwoman of the 800-member Lehigh Valley Tea Party, said she was disappointed by the turnout at the polls, despite criticism and concerns that the country wasn't improving in the past four years under President Barack Obama's tenure.
"I was surprised at the numbers. They were down for the country," she said. "It was really shocking, coming from both sides."
The Tea Party movement gained national recognition during the 2010 midterms in terms of advocating the principles of the U.S. Constitution and calling for a reduction in government spending and taxes.
Polls show that most Tea Party members tend to be Republicans.
But the Tea Party is not a political party. And, Walters said, the Lehigh Valley Tea Party does not endorse candidates.
"We are non-partisan. We don't endorse candidates," Walters said. "Our position hasn't changed. We're still issue-oriented in wanting to limit the government and have more fiscal responsibility and individual rights."
Walters said issues will still be brought before the group.
"The Tea Party has gone from being out there to working behind the scenes," Walters said.
Walters said she believes the party will be more active when elections are more local, when school board and municipal seats are on the line.
"That's what we're going to stick with," she said. "We like having educated voters who don't go by their feelings, but are armed with the knowledge to make the best decisions."
For now, though, Walters worries about the country's future.
"It's a very interesting time. Interesting, but scary," she said. "We're going to be working to make sure we all don't go over the cliff."
Well, now there you go... You bring up topics that don't even apply to us. The idiot Republican with the pregnancy fallacy... LVTP doesn't even take a stand on the issue. Why do you think we are not supportive of public education? We have education reform workshops, have members that run for school board, have members sitting on school boards. And what is wrong with supporting non-government education? Or reigning in out of control spending? http://ccnasd.org/where-did-the-money-go/ I know, just "get along" & stop rocking the boat...
"I will make it my life mission to take back this party. You and your ilk need to crawl back to the caves you came out of!" Conservatives, libertarians, Tea Party members and sympathizers take note of this. Shall we let the so-called opposition party alone to play nice with their friends?
During the next round of school board elections I want yoy to know I WILL BE WATCHING!!! maybe I will even put up some menacing signs to let everybody know. WE ARE STILL WATCHING - Freekin joke!
The "event" you are so upset about was a guest speaker. Guest speakers who do not speak for the LVTP - just read the comment section where that was made abundantly clear. Of course that fact doesn't serve your purpose. Will you be one of those that show up at the school board meeting to encourage them to raise everyone's taxes? Do you really think "more money" = better education? Is that how the rest of the world is beating us in education? Don't ask questions, don't listen to and evaluate speaker's messages... just react, cater to the influential constituencies, do more of the same. I can't wait to read your sign.
It sounds like your hostility should be reserved for those moderate Republicans going back to when Ridge was governor, that is when the funding really began to become screwed up. Please don't project those shortcomings unto us! (nice try though) You should know where the bulk of are fiscal woes will be coming from very shortly - here, go back to another page on that "right-wing" site with the scary government charts on it. http://ccnasd.org/2011/05/06/a-tsunami-of-debt-headed-our-way/ You can point fingers all you want but I can guarantee you the tea party didn't go back in time and force the Ridge to screw this up. You claim to be a moderate Republican and you think Corbett is proud of my work? Forgive me, but I'm beginning to doubt you. Are you sure you're not just a Democrat having some fun? Are you for real?
I resisted going to a Tea Party meeting for almost a year after the one was formed in the Lehigh Valley. My reason - Quite frankly, I don't like to associate with kooks. That was my excuse before I heard of any first hand reports about what goes on there (before there was a Patch that covered their meetings). I had brief encounters with all sorts of libertarians, conservatives, right wingers, in the 90's and learned they are just like anyone else, you judge each one as they come. I also learned how stupid and back-assed politics is around here, so I had no intention of getting near it again. But a woman at my church said she went to one of the meetings and said, "They seemed OK" - so my wife and I went (hint - it's a very cheap "night out").
It's a diverse group, from the very religious to the very atheist. Many retired engineer types, income ranges across the whole spectrum. Kooks- I guess anyone will find someone else that fits their definition of kook, but really no more than you would find in a random sample of the population. The important thing is they were civil, respectful, and aware that something was not right - that the country was headed in the wrong direction. Many, like me, knew this for years. Others had recently in the previous year been inflamed by adminstration policies that wanted to pay off the mortgages of the people who obtained loans they could not afford (remember the McMansion boom?) - while those who may have struggled and sacrificed to stay solvent were supposed to just look on. But it didn't matter why we were meeting, we were all called racists no matter what. That's probably the main reason someone would not want to attend, someone who already realizes that both partyies are to blame, that both parties need to be watched, need to have pressure applied. Attaching yourself unreservedly to one party is the worse thing anyone could do. You're taken for granted. So I've been called all kinds of names. So what? "I'm rubber and you're glue... and all that"
Have you and the low spending army demanded that the state legislature implement the recomendations of the Auditor General? http://www.paessp.org/publications/press-releases/41-news-and-announcements/380-auditor-general-wagner-calls-for-charter-school-reform.html Any lobbying by you guys to reduce unfunded mandates from Harrisburg? Maybe when I see some actual analysis of the problem from your side other than the usual we blame school boards and teachers, I will gain some respect for you and even consider attending a meeting.
"Any lobbying by you guys to reduce unfunded mandates from Harrisburg?" Eh... I was on a "Goals 2000" reform committee in our district way-back-when so I've seen some of this first hand. And in the past year, during the school board comment section I encouraged the board members to lobby and write to their representatives. They seemed agreeable, but did they? I don't know. Too much of this "rolls downhill" like the Goals 2000 mandate did. Feds dangle money with conditions, states jump through the hoops and then expect the districts to comply. And I think you're familiar with how the Harrisburg legislature/teacher pension debacle works - You need a true leader to push thru the legislation and constitutional amendment to rectify it. You need a leader to push through a defined contribution plan for new hires, the most sensible and the most minimal thing that should be done. The guy I voted for in the gubernatorial primary would have done this - the moderate we have doesn't have the spine. I know you don't like Corbett, neither do I - but then what is the solution, a more moderate spineless politician? And if citizens band together and demand better they're told to "go back to their caves"???
I know we did have a delegation of sorts that met with Harrisburg "leaders". Whether all the specifics you mention were brought up I do not know (I would be very surprised if they weren't) - they came back with pretty much the attitude that I've been displaying here, note I put "leaders" in quotes. Basically, Pennsylvania is not Wisconsin: http://lvtp.org/taxesspendingdebt-articles/497-pennsylvania-is-not-wisconsin.html As for the charter schools... Sure, cut the waste. But is the goal of the group you site to help all children, no matter what school they attend, is or to ensure the future of government school unions? Are they simply against charter schools? I could go on for quite a bit about schooling but the day is too short and the weather too nice to spend it in front of the 'puter.