NY Times Columnist Tom Friedman Nails It: Forget the Conservative "Tea Party"; The Angry Non-Conservative, Non-Liberal Masses Are the Real "Tea Party"

In a column this weekend (link at bottom), Friedman (pictured on the left) says that conservative-dominated and so-called "Tea Party Movement," while influential, still amounts to little more than a "'Tea Kettle movement' — because all it’s doing is letting off steam." He declares that the people with the real influence on upcoming elections -- non-liberal, non-conservative Independents, democrats and republicans -- are the "real Tea Party."

They're the angry folks you saw in such droves at all the townhall meetings and protests (as pictured above) during the August of Discontent in 2009 (which did not repeat itself in 2010 because dem lawmakers were too cowardly to hold very many townhalls). They're the folks who are dismissive of the "Tea Kettle" conservative tea partiers, with all of their incoherent drivel about cutting debts and deficits while at the same time cutting taxes right and left and with no concrete proposal or plan whatsoever for doing so (with the exception of Paul Ryan, although most tea partiers and establishment repubs alike run from that guy like he was some form of the plague -- how dare he actually come up with a plan for balancing the budget?!).

As Friedman very accurately describes the "real tea partiers" (a moniker that I don't much care for, but it's just Friedman's way of referring to us): "The important ["real"] Tea Party movement, which stretches from centrist Republicans to independents right through to centrist Democrats, understands this at a gut level and is looking for a leader with three characteristics. First, a patriot: a leader who is more interested in fighting for his country than his party. Second, a leader who persuades Americans that he or she actually has a plan not just to cut taxes or pump stimulus, but to do something much larger — to make America successful, thriving and respected again. And third, someone with the ability to lead in the face of uncertainty and not simply whine about how tough things are — a leader who believes his job is not to read the polls but to change the polls."

The final paragraph of Friedman's column provides an excellent summation: "Any Tea Party that says the simple answer is just shrinking government and slashing taxes might be able to tip the midterm elections in its direction. But it can’t tip America in the right direction. There is a Tea Party for that, but it’s still waiting for a leader."

And Friedman's correct -- we are waiting. How about the aforementioned Paul Ryan? He's been about the only politician on either side for many, many years who has left a favorable impression upon me (at least so far). But alas, he's still just a young guy, about my age. But regardless, someone -- a natural leader and person of character -- has got to step up one of these days to represent the majority of this country which is not on the far left or far right. I still have confidence that such person is out there, somewhere.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/29/opinion/29friedman.html