By SCOTT SMITH
They’re being billed as non-partisan rallies in favor of fiscal responsibility in Washington, and in Tipton and Kokomo today, “Tea Parties” will be rolling.
Promoted by arch conservatives ranging from Glenn Beck to Michelle Malkin to the American Family Association, the Tea Party anti-tax rallies are “basically to let Congress know we’re fed up with out-of-control government spending,” said Jocelyn Lynch, one of the organizers of the Tipton event.
“When an individual gets into a crisis, we tighten up our belts and deal with it, whereas the Congress is on a spending frenzy,” Lynch said.
In Tipton, the rally will be from noon to 2 p.m. on the Tipton County Courthouse square.
In Kokomo, organizers will be meeting from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Sycamore Sports/Celebrations, 3437 W. Sycamore Road.
The main speaker at Tipton will be U.S. Rep. Dan Burton, R-Indianapolis, long regarded as one of the most conservative voices in Washington, and also the lone vote in 2007 against a landmark congressional ethics reform bill.
The tea parties are also being endorsed by the National Republican Congressional Committee, which sent out an e-mail Tuesday showing people how to get to local Tea Parties.
“On this Tax Day, all taxpaying Americans should be concerned that Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats’ runaway tax hikes will be the death of America’s economy as they extend the ‘Pelosi Recession,’” the NRCC press release stated.
Lynch, however, said she was hoping the Tipton event would be non-partisan.
The self-described conservative said she’d asked U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., and Tipton Mayor Dan Delph — also a Democrat — to attend. As of Tuesday, she said Bayh’s office had declined the invitation, and there was no word as yet on Delph.
“They’re all guilty [of overspending],” Lynch said. “In history, whoever has been in power have gone crazy with spending.”
“If you’re fed up with a Congress and a president who are taxing us into the poor house with their out-of-control spending and you believe they are taking us down the road to socialism, come to the rally and bring your protest signs,” reads the flyer Lynch sent out for the Tipton rally.
Scott Smith may be reached at (765) 454-8569 or via e-mail at scott.smith@kokomotribune.com
Where to partake in a Tea Party:
In Tipton, the rally will be from noon to 2 p.m. on the Tipton County Courthouse Square.
In Kokomo, organizers will be meeting from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Sycamore Sports/Celebrations, 3437 W. Sycamore Road.
