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| Approximately 1,600 people attended Saturday’s statewide Tea Party rally at Lakeview Middle School, Warsaw. Photo by Gary Nieter, Times-Union |
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1,600 Attend Warsaw 'Tea Party'
Jennifer Peryam
Times-Union Staff Writer
Citizens Saturday voiced their concerns with the current government and spoke about why they support the Constitution.
A four-hour statewide Tea Party rally attended by approximately 1,600 Hoosiers was at Lakeview Middle School gymnasium, Warsaw.
A stage was set up with red, white and blue balloons and a sign hung across the stage that said "Celebrate Our Heritage."
The Tea Party and Project 912 groups who sponsored the rally included Huntington, Grant County and South Bend Tea Party organizations; Kosciusko County Silent No More; Lake County Tea Party; Hoosier Patriots, a statewide group headquartered in Warsaw; Michiana 912 Group; Wabash C3; Northeast Indiana 912 Project; and Citizens In Action, Indiana Tea Party.
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The rally was titled "Countdown To Judgement Day - Hoosiers Making A Difference in 2010."
Paul Wheeler, Indianapolis, was one of the thousands of people who attended the rally. He made a statement by wearing colonial period attire.
Wheeler said his nickname is "Patriot Paul" in Indianapolis and he attends Tea Party rallies wearing the attire to make a statement on his opposition to how the government has handled the property tax situation.
"I feel strongly about people being evicted from their homes and having to pay unfair property taxes," Wheeler said.
He said there will continue to be Tea Party rallies until the last legislator hears citizens.
Others held signs that said "Read The Constitution - Health Care Bill Is Massive Taxation." One participant wore a sweatshirt that said "Bye, Bye, Bayh."
The keynote speaker Saturday was the Rev. C.L. Bryant, Louisiana, who also spoke at the Sept. 12 Washington, D.C., Tea Party.
"As Americans we should never be ashamed of who we are, and we must defend the freedom of our liberties and American principles," Bryant said.
He said it is time to stop playing the game of political correctness and it is time for politicians to decide if they will defend the Constitution.
"We will not bow down to a foreign dignitary and we don't want a country that is co-dependent on our government," Bryant said.
Other speakers included U.S. Senate candidates Marlin Stutzman, Howe; Richard Behney, Fishers; and Don Bates Jr., Richmond.
The candidates were asked questions and had an opportunity to introduce themselves. They were asked what place does the recognition of God have in the government of our nation?
Bates Jr. said when we are no longer a nation under God, we are a nation God under.
"Obama has ignored God's place in our history, and if you give others the opportunity to acknowledge other Gods, give me the opportunity to acknowledge God," Bates Jr. said.
Behney said it is a shame we have come to the point where President Barack Obama is kneeling before other leaders in other nations. He said our nation was founded on Judeo-Christian values.
Stutzman said we need to send a message to Washington that we are one nation under God and in God we trust.
Other speakers were Thomas Tabback, Texas, a political author, who wrote "Joe The Plumber-Fighting For The American Dream", Peter Heck, a conservative talk show radio host from Kokomo, and Emery McClendon, a Fort Wayne war veteran.
Tabback said there are a group of king and queens in the White House who refuse to listen to the people.
Heck said the Constitution has a legacy of liberty passed down to us by a generation of patriots and we should not compromise that.
McClendon said government has lost focus and is not listening to voters.
"The government wants to destroy our Constitution and the American way of life, and we say no we won't allow them to do it," McClendon said.
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