Thousands of taxpayers from across the nation are planning to descend on Washington, D.C., to take their fight against excessive spending, bailouts, growth of big government and soaring deficits to the front door of the U.S. Capitol – and they say lawmakers can't hide from their loud and clear message.
Fox News' Glenn Beck has been promoting the 9-12 Project to bring citizens back "to the place we were on September 12, 2001."
"The day after America was attacked we were not obsessed with Red States, Blue States or political parties," the 9-12 Project website states. "We were united as Americans, standing together to protect the values and principles of the greatest nation ever created."
On his show, Beck called Americans to forget about party politics and fight for the return to basic principles upon which the nation was founded.
"Our economy is tanking. It doesn't show signs of improving," Beck said. "There are people losing jobs, and it doesn't look like there is more help on the way there; there are more cuts on the way. People around the world are taking to the streets. Our government responds with bailouts, and when you call them up and say 'What are you doing?' you don't get any response. They're not listening to you."
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The White House has not responded to WND's request for comment.
Beck continued, "Ponzi scheme crooks get away with millions, tax cheats are getting promotions, terrorists are on the run, and you just want your family safe. You just want your children to grow up in a sane country, and you don't want anybody indoctrinating your kids when they get to school. I think a lot of people feel like they're alone and they just want to give up. I'm here to tell you something important, and that is: You are not alone."
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Beck said Americans were busy "burying our heads in the sand" or "playing politics" on Sept. 10, 2001.
"It was about Republicans or Democrats," he said. "On 9/11, we were freaking out and no one knew who attacked us. … On 9/12, no one in the government had to tell us what to do. We just did it. … We gathered our families together. We prayed. We were the people that our grandparents were, and nobody had to tell us."
Then the political parties got involved, he said, and Americans went back to their partisan squabbling.
The 9-12 Project challenges Americans to recommit themselves to the following principles:
- America is good.
- I believe in God and He is the Center of my life.
- I must always try to be a more honest person that I was yesterday
- The family is sacred. My family and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
- If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
- I have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
- I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
- It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
- The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.
And the project also emphasizes the following 12 values:
- honesty
- reverence
- hope
- thrift
- humility
- charity
- sincerity
- moderation
- hard work
- courage
- personal responsibility
- gratitude
"Become a 9-12er," Beck said. "Forget about arguing about the parties. … Forget about it. It is a waste of time, and I really believe time is running out."
Above all, he said, the No. 1 principle Americans must stand for is re-establishment of the Constitution.
In a major movement unaffiliated with – but inspired by – Beck's 9-12 Project, called the National Taxpayer Protest, thousands of Americans are answering the call and booking travel arrangements to make their voices heard at Capitol Hill on Sept. 12.
Several organizations have united to help organize the tea party movement's descent on the Capitol, including: Freedom Works, Grassfire/ResistNet, Tea Party Patriots, National Taxpayers Union, Club for Growth, Americans for Tax Reform, Young Americans for Liberty, Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, Our Country Deserves Better, Campaign for Liberty, Leadership Institute, Free Republic, Young America's Foundation, the National Association of Rural Land Owners and Smart Girl Politics.
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"Our mission is to present a unified voice of concern over the current administration's policies regarding taxation, our economy, foreign and domestic policy, as well as our individual constitutional rights as American citizens," said Grassfire national coordinator Darla Dawald in an open invitation to the public to join the Sept. 12 taxpayer march in Washington, D.C. "America is in trouble, the problems and issues are broad and complex and it will take a monumental effort to stop, change and reverse the destructive course that this administration and Congress has put us on. Together, We the People can effect that change!"
On Sept. 10 and 11, the groups will host grass-roots training seminars and Sept. 11 "We'll Never Forget" memorial. The taxpayer march is scheduled to begin at the Lincoln Memorial at 10 a.m. Sept. 12 and culminate with a rally at 1 p.m. in front of the Capitol.
The National Taxpayer Protest website offers detailed information on travel and hotel accommodations, including directions to the event. Tea party attendees may RSVP there as well.
More than 9,000 people have already registered through the protest website, and the number is growing rapidly.
"Obama managed to have 4 million show up at the Capitol grounds," Dawald told WND. "We need to do the same if not more. The financial situation is dire, but as one gentleman said, 'If I have to sell my belongings and crawl there, I will – because it's that important!'"
Jenny Beth Martin of Tea Party Patriots told WND the groups are focused on "protecting the values and principles that have made America the greatest nation for future generations."
She said a confirmed list of speakers and performers will be released soon.
Brendan Steinhauser of FreedomWorks said the movement is gaining momentum as taxpayers plan trips to Washington to join the fight against big government.
"People want to do this," he said. "The people who have been protesting around the country want to come to Washington and do this in D.C. In a lot of ways, they are being ignored and the media is underrepresenting them and their numbers. They want to come together for one big event and send a very clear message."
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Meanwhile, Beck's 9-12 Project mission statement explains:
We want to get everyone thinking like it is Sept. 12, 2001, again. Ask yourself these questions:
- Do you watch the direction that America is being taken in and feel powerless to stop it?
- Do you believe that your voice isn't loud enough to be heard above the noise anymore?
- Do you read the headlines everyday and feel an empty pit in your stomach … as if you're completely alone?
If you've answered YES, then you've fallen for the Wizard of Oz lie. While the voices you hear in the distance may sound intimidating, as if they surround us from all sides – the reality is very different. Once you pull back the curtain, you realize that there are only a few people pressing the buttons, and their voices are weak. The truth is that they don't surround us at all.
We surround them.
As part of his own challenge to America, Beck asked patriots to get together with friends and talk about the country, its values, principles and Founding Fathers' original purpose. He said to stay focused in the quest to take the America back.
"Believe me America, I am as tired as you are. I love my country," he said. "It's not the parties or anything else. It's the principles behind this country. Stand up and fight for them."
WND readers have been sending information on other upcoming tea
parties. Tea Party Patriots also lists events by state on its website, including the follwoing:
Alabama
Wetumpka– Saturday, September 5, time to be announced, Gold Star Park, Shelby Street, downtown
California
Redding– Friday, July 17, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., location to be announced
Florida
Jacksonville – Friday, July 17, time to be announced, Riverwalk
Georgia
Albany – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Bishop's Albany office, 235 Roosevelt Avenue Albany Tower
Athens – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Broun's Athens office, 3706 Atlanta Hwy.
Atlanta – Friday, July 17, at Rep. Lewis' district office, the Equitable building, 100 Peachtree Street, NW
Augusta – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Barrow's Augusta office, 925 Laney Walker Blvd.
Brunswick – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Jack Kingston's Brunswick office, 805 Gloucester Street
Canton – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Price's Canton office, 100 North Street
Columbus – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Bishop's Columbus office, 18 Ninth Street
Dalton – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Deal's Dalton office, 415 E. Walnut Avenue
Dublin – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Marshall's Dublin office, 503 Bellevue Avenue
Evans – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Broun's Augusta/Evans office, 4246 Washington Rd.
Gainesville – Friday, July 17,12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Deal's Gainesville office, 500 Jesse Jewel Pkwy
Hiawassee – Saturday, July 18, line up at 9:45 a.m., parade starts at 11 at 20 Main Street (Hwy 76) in parking lots behind bank and McConnell Memorial Church
Jonesboro – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Scott Jonesboro's office, 173 North Main Street
Lafayette – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Deal's Lafayette office, 108 W. LaFayette Square
Lawrenceville – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Linder's district office, 75 Langley Drive
Lithonia – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Johnston's district office, 5700 Hillandale Dr.
Macon – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Marshall's Macon office, 682 Cherry Street
Marietta – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Gingrey's Marietta office, 219 Roswell Street
Newnan – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Westmoreland's district office, 1601-B East Highway 34
Peachtree City – Saturday, July 18, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., at the Gathering Place, 203 MacIntosh Trail
Rome – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. at Rep. Gringrey's Rome office, 600 East First Street
Roswell – Saturday, Sept. 12, 11:30 a.m.to 1 p.m., Old Historic Square, Hwy 9 and Hwy 120
Sandersville – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Barrow's Sandersville office, city hall, 141 West Haynes Street
Savannah – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., 450 Mall Boulevard
Savannah – Friday, July 31, 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Rousakis Plaza, Historic River Street
Thomasville – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Bishop's Thomasville office, 137 East Jackson Street
Toccoa – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., at Rep. Broun's Tocca office, 194 Remsdale Street
Tucker – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., Rep. Johnston's district office, 3469 Lawrenceville Highway
Valdosta – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., Rep. Jack Kingston's Valdosta office, Valdosta Federal Bilding, 401 N. Patterson St.
Vidalia – Friday, July 17, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., in front of Rep. Barrow's Vidalia office, 107 Old Airport Rd.
Illinois
Peoria – Friday, July 17, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., Aaorn Shock's office at the federal courthouse, 100 Monroe St.
Massachusetts
New Bedford – Friday, July 17, 3 p.m., outside Rep. Barney Frank's office, 558 Pleasant St.
Missouri
Ellisville – Saturday, July 18, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Bluebird Park, 225 Kiefer Creek Road
Montana
Great Falls – Saturday, Sept. 12, 1 p.m., Park Drive and Central Avenue
Nevada
Mesquite – Tuesday, July 14, 12 p.m., Mesquite City Hall
New Jersey
New Brunswick – Thursday, July 16, 4 p.m., Rutgers University's Voorhees Mall between College Ave and George Street
New York
Staten Island – Saturday, Aug. 2, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., Conference House Park - Tottenville
North Carolina
Goldsboro – Saturday, July 18, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Goldsboro Commons, 200 S. Center Street
Maydan – Saturday, July 25, 7 p.m., Washington Mills Bridge in Maydan, meet in bridge parking lot
Ohio
Columbus – Saturday, Aug. 1, Ohio statehouse, corner of Broad and High Street
Texas
Houston – Saturday, Sept. 12, 10 a.m, Norris Convention Center, I-10 and Beltway 8 Southeast corner
Virginia
Chesterfield – Saturday, July 25, 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., Chesterfield County Fairgrounds, 10300 Courthouse Rd.
Staunton – Saturday, Aug. 1, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Gypsy Hill Park Bandstand, Thornrose Avenue
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. – Thursday, Sept. 10, 8 a.m., Capitol
Washington, D.C. – Saturday, Sept. 12, march on the capitol
Wisconsin
New Richmond – Saturday, July 18, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., New Richmond Heritage Center, 1100 Heritage Drive
For more information on these events, or to RSVP, visit the Tea Party Patriots website.