| Why Tea Parties are perfect for a disgruntled, and white, middle class Twenty months after a TV rant spawned a movement, the impact is visible even in President Obama's back yardIt's a very ordinary day on the floor of the Chicago board of trade, though you wouldn't know it as the traders are screaming and waving their hands in the air as though the world were ending. How is it possible to get so excited over the price of pork bellies or the prospects of soya beans?In one corner there is a large group of traders packed in tight and jostling against each other like a crowd of expectant sports fans. They are squashed into the eurodollar pit (this being the impenetrable world of options trading, their activities have nothing to do with euros or dollars).It was on this spot, on the morning of 19 February 2009, that the modern American revolution began when a short, dapper TV reporter with a loud voice called Rick Santelli went live on CNBC and delivered his famous rant.He lambasted the Obama administration, then barely days old, for "promoting bad behaviour" by buying up bad mortgages, which he said was merely rewarding "losers".The traders behind him gave him a mighty roar of approval, the video clip of the rant went viral on YouTube and the rest was history. Out of it were spawned hundreds of protest groups across the country that have come to be known as Tea Parties.Twenty months after his rant, Santelli rarely speaks about what happened and is not actively involved in the movement he helped create. But puffing on a smokeless cigarette between his half-hourly broadcasts, he told the Guardian that he'd "never been more proud to be an American" than when he made that speech. "I struck a nerve that people felt so strongly. If the Tea Parties happened because I threw a match into a tinderbox, then I am proud I did it."What was it about Tea Parties that made him so proud?"Challenging leaders is as American as it gets. The unique thing about our country is that we don't get behind politicians, politicians get behind us."The impact of the rise of the Tea Parties is visible even back in Chicago, where it all began. Despite the fact that this is the home of the Obamas, even here their presence is being felt.Latest polls show that the Democratic candidate for Obama's old senate seat in Illinois, Alexi Giannoulias, is struggling to fend off the challenge of the Republican Mark Kirk. The race, with just two percentage points between them, is extraordinarily close for this heavily left-leaning and union-dominated part of the country.A recent opinion poll by Rasmussen Reports found that more than one in five respondents from Illinois considered themselves part of the Tea Party movement. Almost half thought the movement good for the country.The sense that the Earth is moving even in Obama's back yard was palpable in Blackie's Tavern in downtown Chicago on Wednesday night when an impressive turnout of Tea Party followers gathered to share their excitement about the sea-change they believe they are bringing about.Jeremy Seagal, aged 32, said that by joining the Chicago Tea Party he had created a new social life, hanging out with like-minded people.When he first signed up back in April 2009 it was a lonely calling. Most of his friends are leftwing and he kept quiet about his attachment. One Facebook friend who learned about his affiliation threatened to beat him up if he ever saw him again.But Seagal says the mood has changed. "I think people are starting to see that this is not a fringe movement any more, that it's not nerdy or extremist. Now everybody knows I'm a Tea Party member and proud of it."The tone of the meeting on Wednesday was sober and focused on policy and fiscal issues such as pensions, social security and school choice. The organiser, Steve Stevlic, quipped that everyone should be careful to stay "on message" for the benefit of the CBS News camera that was present, and that when the media had gone home the "real meeting when you can express your hatred" would begin.Chicago Tea Partiers are hypersensitive about what they see as the media representation of them; they think they are cast as deranged racist extremists.Dan Proft, a local radio talkshow host, told the gathering that recent polls showed that one in four Democrats did not approve of what he called "Obamacare" – this year's healthcare reforms. "That makes 25% of the Democratic party racist," he joked.But then there was only one African-American, Jerome Thomas, among the packed bar of about 10 Tea Party supporters, a strikingly low proportion in a city in which black people make up more than a third of the population.Asked why there was such an overwhelmingly white turnout, Thomas said: "The liberal media want to portray the Tea Parties as racist, but that is misleading. The Tea Party ideas represent the values of all American citizens."He conceded that in the past conservatives had made little effort to woo African-Americans, "but things are changing, I wholeheartedly believe in that".The running theme was that the Tea Partiers were sick of paying high taxes, imposed by Democrats and high-spending Republicans alike, and seeing nothing back for it. "In Illinois, they are taxing us more then wasting it, they are taxing us more then stealing it, and we have nothing tangible to show for it," said Nicole Martin.Kirk Kessler, a salesman, griped that his income this month of $8,000 (£5,000) had been whittled down to $4,800 after tax. Was that all it was about then, just a selfish desire to pay less tax? Was a personal desire for more money in your pocket all that the Tea Party was about?"I'm an individualist. I'm going to spend my money better than the government would spend it. Collectivism will not work in this country," Kessler said.Put in these terms, the legendary anger of the Tea Party movement, which has spread fear in the hearts of both Democratic and Republican politicians, begins to sound much more like the traditional midterm bickering of a dissatisfied and economically anxious electorate."This is America!" Santelli declared, his arms wide open, in the middle of his legendary rant. Maybe so, but looked at from the perspective of Chicago at least, the America he invoked looks remarkably similar to the age-old grumblings of a disgruntled, and white, middle class.United StatesUS midterm elections 2010Barack ObamaTea Party movementDemocratsRepublicansEd Pilkingtonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
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Bahrain's elections overshadowed by crackdown on Shia protesters Gulf state goes to the polls amid rising tensions and fears of return to authoritarianismIt's hard to miss the signs on the streets of Manama: King Hamad peering benignly from giant billboards, and everywhere pictures of smiling candidates in spotless white dishdashas and headdresses pledging to build more houses, fight corruption and devote themselves to the welfare of ordinary voters."Our appointment is with you," declares one official poster. "Your vote is for all of us," promises another.But tomorrow's election comes at an awkward moment for Bahrain, the Arab world's smallest country and – until now – one of the freest in the Gulf.Final rallies this week brought out thousands – male and female supporters strictly separated – to cheer Sheikh Ali Salman, leader of the al-Wifaq movement, whose slogans blend Shia religion and secular politics. Nearby, in Madinat Issa, teenage girls in jeans and T-shirts handed out sweet pastries as the liberal Wa'ad party made its last eve-of-poll pitch.Yet, this impressive display of democratic campaigning is being overshadowed by a crackdown that some people worry risks the future stability of an island state just a few miles from Iran which manages to be a bustling international financial centre and home to the US fifth fleet.Forty seats in the lower house are up for grabs in a contest dominated by al-Wifaq, which is popular with the two-thirds or so of Bahrainis who are Shia Muslims. The country's Shias are generally poorer than their Sunni compatriots, and follow religious leaders in both Iraq and Iran. Last time the party captured 17 seats, the rest taken by Sunnis loyal to King Hamad's al-Khalifa dynasty, which came to the island from Saudi Arabia via Kuwait two centuries ago.The government and the western PR advisers it employs are working hard to burnish Bahrain's image at this "historic moment" – the third election since much-vaunted reforms began in 2002. Arab and western media – including the Guardian – have been invited to cover the vote.Still, unease is not hard to find. "It is not a comfortable situation," admitted Abdulnabi Alekry of the Bahrain Transparency Society. "The country is passing through a period of tension. You have to be on your guard about what you say so you are not accused of tarnishing the state's reputation."The latest trouble began in August after seven people were convicted of killing a policeman. Protesters burning tyres and throwing petrol bombs in Shia villages faced a sudden massive crackdown, with 250 or more arrested in raids that were a grim throwback to the bad old days of the 1990s.But it went beyond rounding up the usual suspects. Muhammad Sahlawi, a dentist and Wifaq supporter, was taken away by unidentified men and is still in detention. "We don't know why they took him and where he is now," said his sister Fatima. "Maybe it is to do with the elections."Human Rights Watch is concerned about allegations of torture and violations of due process, warning of "a return to full-blown authoritarianism".The tensions are palpable in Sanabis village near Manama, where slogans proclaim solidarity with "martyrs" and the 23 people who were arrested on terrorist and conspiracy charges this month."Tyrants beware," warns one crudely printed flyer."We do not forget our prisoners," says another.Scorch marks on the roads signpost previous clashes. Riot police vehicles stand guard at junctions, blue lights flashing in the hot night air.The government is unapologetic. "It is not a matter of a security crackdown," insisted Sheikh Khalid bin Ali al-Khalifa, the minister of justice. "There were crimes committed that coincided with the elections."Sunnis and some Shias support tough measures. But both Bahraini and foreign observers believe something larger is afoot – a carefully co-ordinated response decided on by the king and his advisers.In this view, the reform process was in serious trouble long before the rioting during Ramadan. Anger was mounting over $65bn (£41bn) worth of prime real estate that used to be public land but somehow became royal property. And alarmingly for the government, Shia and Sunni MPs had joined forces to investigate this previously taboo issue, showing that parliament was far from toothless even with an appointed upper chamber to keep things under control."The government is happy when Sunnis and Shias quarrel," said Mansoor al-Jamri, editor of al-Wasat newspaper, a rare independent voice. "This was a red line." The aim of the crackdown, he and others believe, was to provoke a reaction and perhaps an election boycott by Wifaq. "It was saying to everyone: 'Behave yourselves. The Sunnis are our servants. And you Shia – we can break your heads any time.'"Another hot button sectarian issue is tajnis: the naturalisation of non-Bahraini Sunnis – Syrians, Jordanians, Yemenis and Baluchis. The government says it is importing skills. Critics say the goal is to change the demographics to boost Sunni dominance, especially in the security forces. "It's humiliating," said Yusuf, a Shia student.Precise figures are not available but the population has grown from 750,000 to more than 1 million in a few years while the number of Shias in senior jobs has decreased.Newer concerns include the dissolution of the Bahrain Human Rights Society, an independent NGO. The Wifaq and Wa'ad websites have both been shut down. Both parties failed to persuade the government to tighten up monitoring of the 10 central non-constituency polling centres that were widely suspected of being used for fraud last time.Quiet lobbying by the US is credited with helping to restore a measure of calm in the past few days. British diplomats have also been talking privately to the government about the dangers of its current hard line.Part of the problem is countering Bahraini arguments about regional threats – with Iran glowering across the Gulf and Arab governments still nervously digesting the implications of the war in Iraq and the popularity of Hezbollah in Lebanon."The Bahraini government has been quite successful in convincing the world that the problems here are linked to Iran and the wider Sunni-Shia divide," said human rights activist Nabeel Rajab, a fierce critic.Tehran is certainly sympathetic to the Khalifas' opponents. But there is no evidence of Iranian state support for subversion or violence. The trial of the 23, due to start next week, will be watched carefully for that.Munira Fakhro, a highly regarded Wa'ad candidate, has no doubts about what has happened so far. It is Bahrain's future that is uncertain: "The government wanted to worsen tensions between Sunnis and Shias by blaming the Shias and saying there is a conspiracy," she said. "But it is also possible that everything will go back to normal after the elections when the government has the parliament it wants."BahrainMiddle EastIslamIan Blackguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
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