Tea Party Movement

The Tea Party movement is a populist United States protest movement. The movement emerged in 2009 through an ongoing series of Tea Party protests. The protests are partially in response to the 2009 stimulus package as well as the 2008 bailouts. In 2010 The Economist described the movement as "America's most vibrant political force."

In general, the Tea Party movement supports constitutionally limited government, fiscal responsibility and free markets. More specifically, the movement is anti-stimulus, anti-deficit and anti-bailout. Some demonstrators have also opposed federal support for the ailing automobile industry.

The name "Tea Party" is a reference to the historic Boston Tea Party of 1773, a protest by American colonists against taxation by the British government when the colonists had no representation in the British Parliament. The Boston Tea Party pre-dated and laid the groundwork for the American Revolutionary War. Tea Party protests have sought to evoke similar images, slogans and themes to this iconic period in American history.

The name may also refer to the often-used acronym, "TEA Party," a play on a party slogan: "Taxed Enough Already."

The Tea Party's protests are a series of nationally-coordinated protests across the United States beginning in early 2009. The protests are part of a nascent, larger anti-tax political movement called the Tea Party movement. Among other events, protests have been held on:

• February 27, 2009: to protest the TARP bailout bill signed by Bush, and the stimulus bill then-recently passed by Congress.
• April 15, 2009: to coincide with the annual U.S. deadline for submitting tax returns, known as Tax Day.
• July 4, 2009: to coincide with Independence Day.
• September 12, 2009: to coincide with the anniversary of the day after the September 11 attacks.
• November 5, 2009: Washington D.C. again to protest the impending Health insurance vote.
• March 14–21, 2010: Several protests took place in Washington, D.C. during the final week of debate on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
• Most Tea Party activities in 2010 have been focused on opposing the efforts (supported by the Obama Administration) to enact a very broad program of changes to the health care and health insurance industries, and on recruiting, nominating, and supporting candidates for upcoming state and national elections.