The American Spectator : The Spectacle Blog : Obama Steeps Tea Partiers

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Americans for Tax Reform notes today that the president used the derogatory term for tea partiers in an interview with Jonathan Alter for his upcoming book, The Promise: President Obama, Year One, and then reminds us of his call for civility only a few days ago in his commencement speech at the University of Michigan.

Obama bemoans name-calling…

“We've got politicians calling each other all sorts of unflattering names...”

Obama calls for basic civility…

“Now, the second way to keep our democracy healthy is to maintain a basic level of civility in our public debate...”

Obama laments the demonizing of political opponents…

“We can't expect to solve our problems if all we do is tear each other down. You can disagree with a certain policy without demonizing the person who espouses it...”

Obama reminds others of the Golden Rule…

“So what do we do? As I found out after a year in the White House, changing this type of politics is not easy. And part of what civility requires is that we recall the simple lesson most of us learned from our parents: Treat others as you would like to be treated, with courtesy and respect...”

It's difficult for me to think of a more vulgar term (if you don't know what teabagging is, it is easy to find out on the Web) to characterize those who disagree with you. To say the least it is unbecoming of a president, and in my opinion worse than the use of profanity.

topics:
Barack Obama, Tea Parties

View all comments (24) | Leave a comment

Pete| 5.4.10 @ 1:31PM

Just as with race, liberals have a monopoly on all things homosexual. So the thinking goes, this allows them to use racist terms and homo terms with impunity while screeching at top voice if anyone on the right alludes to either area directly or indirectly. Must be fun to live in a fantasy world all the time. I just can't seem to suspend reality long enough to join them.

SoCon| 5.4.10 @ 1:51PM

Trailer trash.

Dixie Pixie| 5.4.10 @ 2:05PM

Didn't you know. Obama has a presidential exemption from all pronouncements.

He also has a Signing Statement buried somewhere stating it is the Law of the land that Obama's pronouncements are always true and it is the facts that are wrong.

Thomas Aquinas| 5.4.10 @ 2:11PM

Kevin Jennings would have something to say on this, but he was tea bagging in a team room and thus could not speak.

SoCon| 5.4.10 @ 2:19PM

Gross, most-likely true, and funny all at the same time.

Johannah S.| 5.4.10 @ 2:34PM

I believe that if President Obama is going to tell the opposite party to behave a certain way, then he should make sure that both parties abide by those standards. It is easy to blame the opponent, but as President, he needs to listen to all of the people he represents.

Ken (Old Texican)| 5.4.10 @ 2:34PM

Did you guys know?

Kyle-Ann Shiver wrote a very moving article about "tea______g" for American Thinker, and wound up separating from the site because they would not run it.

Folks,
if I may euphemize...the term describes a nasty form of rape, often used on children by pedophiles.

Si Vis Pacem| 5.4.10 @ 2:42PM

TEX! It isn't pedophilia... it's intergenerational wuv.

SoCon| 5.4.10 @ 3:00PM

Ken, I knew the term was disgusting, but I had no idea it involved child-rape. How sick and perverted does the Left have to be to make light of this matter?
Boggles the mind.

NavyBrat| 5.4.10 @ 4:38PM

Ken. I knew I hadn't seen Ms. Shiver's columns on American Thinker anymore & was wondering why. This is the first I've heard of the reson for her departure. That's too bad. I REALLY enjoyed her work. Good ole Robin of Berkley has managed to do a good job of picking up where she left off, but I DO miss Ms. Shiver.

SoCon| 5.4.10 @ 5:36PM

NB, Kyle-Ann Shiver has her own website--just google her name.

I read the article Ken mentioned--it's heartbreaking and not for the faint of heart. Shiver's a good writer and she's got quite a story to tell.

It makes Obama's tawdriness even worse.

AlysonL| 5.4.10 @ 2:36PM

The President obviously had no idea what he was saying when he said tea-baggers. He would never say something vulgar to harm himself.

REMEMBER NOVEMBER!| 5.4.10 @ 2:56PM

Of course the vulgar little street thug knew what he was saying. He also knew there would be no 'harm' in saying something ugly about his political adversaries. There never is.

November 2, 2010--don't forget.

ds80| 5.4.10 @ 8:17PM

Oh that's just wonderfully consistent of you, AlysonL: Tea Partiers and the right must be careful of what they say but Obama gets a free pass.

Do you even think before you speak? Or are you just emulating Obama?

Carolina| 5.4.10 @ 2:38PM

Yeah, that's a ridiculous term to use. Inappropriate even. It's true though.

Mister X| 5.4.10 @ 3:24PM

Christ on a stick. The term tea baggers was first used by ... tea baggers to describe themselves. So now Obama can't even use a term that the tea baggers themselves used? What the h*** is wrong with you people?

Interloper| 5.4.10 @ 4:38PM

Stop lying, pervert; Anderson Cooper started it.
Of course, the Liberal Party of abortion and NAMBLA would find humor in this disgusting epithet. Sick sick sick.

Slimeball defines you.

ds80| 5.4.10 @ 8:22PM

How efficient of you, Mister X: disparage two whole classes of Americans in one post: Christians and Tea Partiers. Get your facts straight - you are laughably uninformed. Typical of the Left, for whom facts do not matter.

Mister X| 5.4.10 @ 3:46PM

http://washingtonindependent.c.....t-be-named

Click on the link, wingnuts. It's a term that tea baggers themselves have proudly put on buttons.

Wingnuts are idiots.

Raoul Ortega| 5.4.10 @ 7:59PM

So lemme get this straight. Just because a few people used a term for themselves, but now dissavow it completely, it's still okay to use it even though it's derogatory. So, Mister X, you must insist on calling someone who prefers "African-American" "black" or some of those other, older obsolete or derogatory terms, right? Because, after all, it's still the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Negro College Fund and so that makes it right?

Who the hell are you to judge what people want to call themselves? What a hypocritical, racist bigot you are.

ds80| 5.4.10 @ 8:26PM

Mister X: "a term that tea baggers themselves have proudly put on buttons."

You do know what parody is, right? Those buttons are meant to mock the likes of Cooper, you, and now Obama. Seems to be working ...

Margie| 5.4.10 @ 4:08PM

In the cult of the Left, only their high and mighty ones are allowed to "name call" you see. Because according to them when they "name call" it isn't really "name calling." It's sharing the love. Let's call it cult rule numero uno. or #1.

But when we DARE to speak truthfully as in call an "Ace an Ace" ..wait, is that racist? Oh I hope not. No~ when we put a descriptive word to the behavior, then and only then can the term racist be applied.

martin j smith| 5.4.10 @ 5:54PM

Perhaps the American voter ought to be given this choice: Governed by adults or governed by infants ?
Guess who the infants are. Well ok, ok perhaps teen agers might be more appropriate.