PPP's first look at the 'Tea Party' in North Carolina finds that only 15% of voters in the state actively identify as members of it, which could help explain why self proclaimed candidates of the movement didn't fare all that well in the primaries two weeks ago.
Even among Republicans in the state only 32% claim 'Tea Party' membership. Although leaders of the movement try to claim that it's something more than a subset of the Republican Party just 17% of independents and 3% of Democrats call themselves Tea Partiers.
Personal identification with the Tea Party may be low in North Carolina, but agreement with its goals is broader. 40% of voters say they support what the movement is trying to accomplish while 36% stand opposed to its goals.
The Tea Party movement has a long way to go before it's a powerful force in state politics. But it does have the potential to be a player if it can turn more of those 40% who agree with its goals (or at least what they perceive them to be) into active participants in the movement.
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4 comments:
The tea party is depicted in the media as a bunch of racist, xenophobic, violent, extremists. Would you want to be a member of that group? That's why more people agree with their ideas than want to be part of the group. Their goal is influence ideas, not to be a large group.
The tea party isn't a subset of the Republican Party. It's separate from it. Considering that their goal is small government wouldn't you expect a high percentage to be Republicans? When people say that it's not a subset of the Republican Party they are saying that the tea parties are first about certain goals, not being Republican.
"The tea party is depicted in the media as a bunch of racist, xenophobic, violent, extremists."
Isn't the media supposed to be objective?
"The tea party isn't a subset of the Republican Party. It's separate from it."
Yeah, just about as separate as Fox News is. I don't know a single Tea Partier who isn't a rabid Republican. It's a small sample, but their rallies are all organized, at least in NC, by Republican operatives. It's a joke. If they were serious-minded, genuine citizens concerned with government bloating, they would have started their rallies long ago, before a black Democrat came into office.
"Considering that their goal is small government wouldn't you expect a high percentage to be Republicans?"
No, I'd expect them to be true libertarians and anarchists. But since their goals are disingenuous and phony, of course they're largely Republican.
Typical liberal/progressive anti-Tea Party drivel from Anon.
Just came back from the Tea Party Summit (which was infiltrated by some young socialist spies btw) - no Repub ops that I saw.
But of course liberal Kool-Aid drinking, propaganda spewing liberals will never admit the truth - that the Tea Party is causing a real change in politics today, and is a force to be reckoned with.
Too bad weak-minded socialists just need Big Daddy to sit in the Oval Office, telling them what to do, instead of being able to think for themselves, have initiative, and get a real non-government, non-ACORN job.
If Fox News is part of the Republican Party then MSNBC, CNN, LA Times, ABC, CBS, NY Times, Newsweek, Time, and Washington Post must be just Democratic communications arms.
Can you please provide me the names of the Republican operatives who organized these tea parties? How many people have you talked to at the tea party events? Or is it just what they tell you on MSNBC? I've talked to hundreds of people.
I've been to several California rallies and I've found that some people affiliated with various Republican organizations do attend. A few have even spoken at the events. How horrible! They should be blacklisted and excluded. You know, the way that unions are excluded from any Democratic rally.
Your comments about the rallies shows an ignorance with anyone who is not a Democrat. They were concerned with big government for most of the Bush administration. That's why they didn't show up to vote for congressional Republicans in 2006 and 2008. They made noise. No one reported it.
Conservatives don't usually do protest rallies. The nature of conservatism is contrary to protests. The only reason they started is because Rick Santelli's remark caught fire.
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