‘Tea Party' lawmakers just fulfilling promises

I’ve heard a lot of criticism about the current freshmen class of elected officials in the U.S. Congress — the “Tea Party” members, if you will.

Democrats, led by Harry Reed and Nancy Pelosi say that the Tea Party members in the House of Representatives are the big problem in Congress. Reed, Pelosi and other Democrats, including President Obama, tell us that this radical right wing freshmen class is holding even the Republican Party “hostage” and Tea Party members of Congress are to blame for President Obama’s failed agenda.

Well, let’s look at the Tea Party’s list of 15 “Non-negotiable Core Beliefs.” These are taken directly from a Tea Party’s website.

1. Illegal aliens are here illegally.
2. Pro-domestic employment is indispensable.
3. A strong military is essential.
4. Special interests must be eliminated.
5. Gun ownership is sacred.
6. Government must be downsized.
7. The national budget must be balanced.
8. Deficit spending must end.
9. Bailout and stimulus plans are illegal.
10. Reducing personal income taxes is a must.
11. Reducing business income taxes is mandatory.
12. Political offices must be available to average citizens.
13. Intrusive government must be stopped.
14. English as our core language is required.
15. Traditional family values are encouraged.

These are the core values that Tea Party candidates ran on, these are the core values their constituents believe in and, most importantly, these are the core values they were elected on.

Can you imagine that, elected officials doing exactly what they promised the voters they would do? What a novel idea!

Gregory Gardner
Yuma