The Tea Party Republicans Amongst Us
“All politics is local,”
said Democratic Party House Speaker Tip O’Neill.
Too many Tea Party people haven’t figured that out.
These signs on Randall Road in Algonquin don't have a local angle. Dissatisfaction is directed at the national government. There are lots and lots of vacancies for GOP Precinct Committeeman in Algonquin and Lake in the Hills.
You can tell by the signs at the early demonstrations. Most were aimed at President Obama and Obamacare.
True, elements were deeply involved in the victory of Joe Walsh over incumbent Melissa Bean.
But, for 2010, I can identify only three new McHenry County Republican Precinct Committeeman candidates who were at a demonstration:
- Diane Evertsen of Hartland 1, who also ran for the McHenry County Board and won
- Shawn Green of Coral 3, then-President of the Huntley Park Board, now running for the County Board
- Rita Heuel of Algonquin 13 in Crystal Lake’s Coventry subdivision
It’s now 2012.
Both Evertsen and Heuel are running for re-election as Precinct Committeeman, while Green is not.
But, there is a new crop.
Not large, but enthusiastic.
They cover all four corners of the county.
In the northwest corner is 19-year old [not 23, as originally posted] McHenry County College student Melissa Denker. She is running in Dunham Township, which is the southern part of Harvard and points south.
Lori Lee White
In the northeast section there are two candidates, also women:
- Mary B. Joestgen in Richmond 4
- Lori Lee White in Burton 3, active in the Antioch Tea Party. White provided most of the content of this weekend’s article,
Spring Grove Tea Party Members Rally for Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker
In southeastern Algonquin Township Heuel has been joined by Andrew Gasser in Algonquin 4, a Fox River Grove precinct south of the tracks.
Andrew Gasser
Gasser is a coalition coordinator within the tea party movement and also leads the TEA Party in Space.
During the debt ceiling debate, he worked in DC to spread the Tea Party message of fiscal responsibility, limited government, and free markets. Gasser reaches out to state and local Tea Party leaders to ensure message clarity to maximize impact in Washington DC. He most recently worked the SOPA and PIPA issue informing leaders and members of the tea party who to contact in Washington, besides their local Congressman, which lead to SOPA and PIPA being dropped. In McHenry County, he works closely with the Algonquin Tea Party and Crystal Lake Tea Party.
Although not running for GOP Precinct Committeeman, Nunda Township’s Mary Alger, head of the Crystal Lake Tea Party, is running for the McHenry County Board in District 3.
You can tell from Mary Alger's yard sign that she is a TEA Party Republican. Look especially st the upper left hand corner where Alger has turned the stylized GOP elephant into a tea pot.
Of course, there are others who identify with the Tea Party folks, but pre-date the movement.
If I missed anyone activated by the TEA Party movement, please tell us in the comment section.
