by Bridget Blanton
Tom Tancredo, former Congressman from Colorado kicked off the First National Tea Party Convention in Nashville, Tennessee with a rousing address to Tea Partiers from across the nation. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” Tancredo announced. “There’s something happening here,” Tancredo went on to say as he referenced year one of the modern Tea Party movement. “Take it back, it’s your nation,” Tancredo told the packed room that erupted in applause.
The former Congressman voiced his concerns about the march of big government, the loss of personal freedom and the threat of multiculturalism. When talking about our flag, our country’s history and the indisputable greatness of this nation, the Congressman was visibly moved. A true patriot, Tancredo opened this gathering of Patriots with energy, enthusiasm and a message to the crowd to stay the course.
The presence of media from around the world in Nashville has surprised many of the Convention participants. Many of these same folks were also present at the 9/12 March on Washington, D.C. which was notoriously downplayed and under-reported on by most American media outlets.
As I waited for Congressman’s Tancredo’s opening remarks, I spoke with Carolyn Lowry of Kentucky. Like many of the folks gathered in Nashville this weekend, Carolyn had never been politically active before; yet in the past year, she and her husband attended local Tea Parties, a Town Hall Meeting, as well as the 9-12 March in D.C. Earlier in the evening, Carolyn had been interviewed by the New York Times; and that’s not all, I’m happy to announce that on the Tea Party Convention floor, Carolyn signed up at Smart Girl Politics.
Right after an interview with Campbell Brown of CNN, Smart Girl Politics member, Lisa Mei of Virginia took to the stage to sing her hit song “Revolution’s Brewing” along with some new material as part of the evening’s entertainment line-up. Red Rhinestone-studded cowboy boots peeked out from her jeans as Lisa brought the crowd to its feet more than once with her patriotic lyrics and melodic voice. Lisa will be featured in the April, 2010 issue of ‘Spin’ magazine as part of a story on the music of the Tea Party Movement.
Ray Stevens brought his entire Band to the stage as the headlining act and put the crowd in a partying mood. Stevens brought people to their feet and got them dancing as he played new music, patriotic tunes, as well as some of the old favorites. His performance reflected the energy of the crowd tonight.
Patriotism is the common thread from the convention logo exhibiting the stars and stripes and the American eagle, to the speakers and the evening’s entertainment. In some respects, this gathering in Nashville is a celebration of a phenomenal year when freedom-loving Americans united nation-wide through local grassroots networking in defense of the Constitution, our Judeo-Christian heritage and our way of life. All weekend long, these Patriots will be networking with each other, learning from each other and generally focusing the passion of the Tea Party into action. The event will culminate with a Keynote Address by Sarah Palin on Saturday night which will be covered by global news networks and viewed by millions around the world.
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