Tuesday, January 19, 2010

We're so proud of Lloyd Marcus & William Owens

From Fox News - "Black Conservatives Take Lead Role in Tea Party Movement"


Black Conservatives Take Lead Role in Tea Party Movement

By Judson Berger
- FOXNews.com

Though the tea party movement has attracted criticism for its supposed lack of diversity, minority activists who are involved say the movement has little to do with race, and that it is attracting a more diverse crowd every day.

Lloyd Marcus is shown here at a March 2009 tea party rally in Orlando. (Courtesy of Lloyd Marcus)

Lloyd Marcus' conservatism started when he was 9.

His family had just moved out of the "ghetto" to a brand-new high rise in Baltimore -- within months, he said, the "dream come true" turned into a nightmare, as the building of welfare-collecting black residents became a den of crime.

His father moved the family out as soon as he got a job with the city fire department, but "my cousins never escaped," Marcus said. He cried as he told the story.

Marcus, a black conservative who is now involved in the growing tea party movement, attributes the problems of his childhood neighborhood, his extended family and the black community in general to a "cradle-to-grave government dependency" that in the case of his cousins enabled an idle life of crime and drug abuse.

To Marcus, President Obama's policies perpetuate that dependency. That's why, he says, it baffles him and other black conservatives when the tea party movement is dismissed as somehow anti-black, as a rowdy bunch of ignorant, white protesters who have it in for the nation's first black president.

"This is the nicest angry mob I've ever seen," Marcus said.

Marcus is one of a number of black conservatives who have joined up with, and helped lead, the conservative tea party movement since its inception. Though the movement has attracted criticism for its supposed lack of diversity -- MSNBC host Chris Matthews recently called the groups "monochromatic" and "all white" -- those minority activists who are involved say the movement has little to do with race, and that it is attracting a more diverse crowd every day.

"I think a lot of black people are waking up from their Obama night-of-the-living-dead fog," Marcus said. "They were walking around like zombies going Obama, Obama, Obama."

He and other black conservatives connected with one of the hundreds of tea party groups across America were largely active in conservative and Republican causes before the movement's start in early 2009. They spoke and wrote about the need for smaller government, lower spending and lower taxes and warned that Obama's candidacy would pose a threat to those values.
But in the tea party movement they found a group that not only reflected their views but provided a platform.

Marcus campaigned with a group against Obama in the 2008 election. But the Florida resident, who is a musician, gained a degree of fame in the tea party world a year ago when he cut a "tea party anthem" song -- in it, he belted about the dangers of wealth redistribution to a gospel-sounding backup track.

"In less than a week, the song was national," Marcus said. He was asked to sing at an Orlando tea party rally last spring and has since performed at rallies across the country. He's traveled cross-country on both Tea Party Express tours and plans to join up for the third tour this March.

Marcus does not advocate for the creation of a third party, but said the tea party groups should serve to pull the Republican Party back to the conservative roots from which it has strayed.

William Owens, a black author and publisher who with his wife traveled on the Tea Party Express tours with Marcus and has spoken at just about every stop along the way, also came out strongly against Obama in 2008. He published the book, "Obama: Why Black America Should Have Doubts," before the election, in an attempt to address what he called a "misguided passion" toward the former Illinois senator in black America.

When the tea party movement started, he said he found a way to build on what he was already doing, outside the Republican Party system which he calls out of touch. He first spoke at a rally in Las Vegas on tax day last April.

"It was just a natural fit," Owens said.

He said the rallies are still "mostly white," but that more blacks are getting involved. He took particular umbrage at Matthews' comment, blasting out a press release that criticized the MSNBC host for "pushing conservative black Americans to the back of the media bus."

Owens now publishes a journal documenting the tea party cross-country tours. The Multi-Cultural Conservative Coalition is also sponsoring the next leg of the Tea Party Express.

Despite the enthusiastic involvement of black conservatives in the tea party rallies and trips, Obama still enjoys seemingly unshakable support from the majority of black Americans. A recent poll from Gallup put Obama's approval rating among blacks at 91 percent. Among whites, that number was 42 percent.

Tea party groups also might not be doing themselves any favors when some of their supporters are photographed holding somewhat shocking signs at rallies -- such as one last year that said, "The White House has a lyin' African."

But such demonstrators may be the exception.

Charles Lollar, a Maryland-based tea party supporter who is black, said there's no validity to the racism charges.

"I've seen black faces in the crowd. I've seen Latino faces in the crowd. ... It's not a movement of color. It's not a movement of party. It's a movement of principle. It's a movement of America," Lollar said.

Lollar started speaking at tea party events last winter and said his biggest motivation is opposition to the stimulus package -- both the $787 billion package that passed last February and the sequel that some Democrats are trying to push this year.

Lollar has since parlayed his activism into a high-stakes campaign. The Charles County businessman is hoping win the GOP nomination to challenge House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., in the congressional midterm this November.

"When we beat him in November, it's going to send a strong message across the country," he said.

Lollar, whose previous post was as chairman of the Charles County Republican Central Committee, has an uphill battle to unseat the nation's second most powerful House Democrat.

Hoyer has been in office nearly three decades, and his latest campaign finance report put his available cash at $1.3 million. Lollar said he's raised $40,000 -- he aims to raise $2.5 million by fall.

Lollar is running from within the GOP apparatus. But it remains to be seen whether the party establishment will reach out to other tea party conservatives like him to ensure they stay loyal to the Republican Party and not challenge it like Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman did in New York state. Hoffman, who is white, pushed out the Republican candidate in the race for Congressional District 23, and ended up losing narrowly to Democrat Bill Owens.

David Avella, executive director of Republican recruiter GOPAC, said his organization hasn't been actively mining the tea party movement for state and local candidates but that the groups could prove fertile ground for candidates.

"Many in the tea party movement are Republicans who want to make sure the party gets back to its fiscal discipline days," he said, calling those activists natural "allies."

Tea partiers point to recent political coups they say demonstrate the movement's broadening influence and appeal. And they say they feel a certain freedom in the scattered leadership of the movement, as opposed to the top-down style of the GOP.

"I think it's great that we have all these different organizations and they have nobody in charge," Marcus said.

Marcus cited Hoffman's influence in the New York race as well as Republican Scott Brown's bid for the Massachusetts Senate seat once held by Ted Kennedy. Brown, while not sprouting from the tea party movement, is supported by it as he enjoys a late-in-the-game surge in the race.

"This is a movement that has swept the country," Marcus said. "It has really been the rebirth of conservatism in America."

Interestingly, Marcus said he used to work with one of Obama's biggest supporters, Oprah Winfrey, decades ago at a local station in Baltimore before she moved to Chicago.

The two have since lost touch, he said.

8 comments:

  1. Lloyd Marcus will you please write a song about the Historical Victory for Scott Brown,the Tea Party Express, and all the members and supporters that made this DREAM come true. Only you can write this National song, I will buy the first copy. Thanks for everything Lloyd.

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  2. Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL.) voted for the Health Care Bill after being bribed to give three counties in FLA. A Medicare supplement exemption, Miami-Dade,Broward,and Palm Beach. These are probably the most populous and wealthy counties. Bill Nelson and Ben Nelson have a lot in common,they want to buy their votes with Taxpayers money.

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  3. i am a lefty question please-- how do you guys fell about SC decision ???
    thank you in advance i think maybe the left & right may get together on this

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  4. I am proud of Charles Lollar!
    Charles was at Marylands' very first Tea Party and has since been seen at Tea Party's all over the the East Coast. I urge you to please help Charles Lollar defeat Steny Hoyer in Maryland's Fifth District's Congressional Race. Charles is the real deal - please take a moment to visit his website and view one of the videos to get a sense of this Patriot. He has captivated many Marylander's however his message connects to all Americans.
    Charles is a Marine, Businessman, Husband and Father of four daughters.
    He's not a polititian - he's An American Who Needs Your Help To Make A Difference and unseat the 28yr Congressman Steny Hoyer.
    http://www.lollarforcongress.com
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xrRPk-TZa0

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  5. Ummmm...I think this is the biggest load of BS I've ever wasted timer reading. "as the building of welfare-collecting black residents became a den of crime." WOW! Basically, without jobs or healthcare, and no welfare...what would people be left with? Their bootstraps? I'd really like to know how many Teabaggers are actually on some kind of welfare. Hopefully none of them are driving on our government funded roadways, or are attending or have kids attending publicly funded schools. Me thinks there is more than a little inconsistency involved.

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  6. Hey Lloyd and William! Can't you see how these halfwits are using you? They wouldn't give you the time of day if it wasn't a good look for them to embrace you. You know what they'd say or probably already do say about you behind your back. I'm sure you know what they call you...you are strategy to them and nothing more. Your song and activism are unconscionable. You are a sellout in the purest form! You need to wise up!

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  7. It's obvious that selfish left-wingers cannot stand it when "a natural ally" turns away. The left requires that everyone else go along with their plans. What can you call that except selfishness? Myself meanwhile as a libertarian would rather that I be left to run my own life and the same for my fellow citizens. In terms of the rest of society, I am selfLESS, in that I do not seek to have power over their lives. Would you rather describe yourself as selfless, or selfish? You get liberty, because you give it to others. Keep it from others and soon you may be the one from whom liberty is kept. Assure it for all, by giving it to all. "What goes around, comes around." Sound familiar? You seek power over others and that goes around too. Which is better in the long run? Not the short-term, the long run. What is pie-in-the-sky and what is not? ? Power corrupts. Concentrations of power need to be avoided. Humans cannot be trusted with the responsibility. We have to face it and limit the damage they can do, by reducing the amount of influence that any individual can have. It’s not a criticism, just a statement of fact. No amount of education or technologies will make the danger of power be negated. There is no “progress” we can make as a society that leads to the perfection of humanity. Get over it. Accept what comes. It’s not unlike the climate. It changes. We have to deal with that. We don’t control it. We will never be smart enough. You want to know how “smart” humanity is? We invented nuclear weapons. What a brilliant idea! This is what happens when government really puts its head into something. What’s next? Eugenics?

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  8. where the HELL were you people when bush was in office. the debt and taxing came from his administration you idiots...lol. My grandad died becuase his insurance coverage was cancelled because he had become ill. And you people are making a big deal about taxes. we have already BEEN PAYING FOR MEDICARE, MEDICADE, AND SOCIAL SECURITY ALREADY!!! Honestly i just think you people have a bias against an educated black man in office...just my opinion. Oh, and as a side note...if you have to do a story about diversity and list 4 black people...the tea party movement is NOT DIVERSE..lol. Plus, I'll give you a quick history lesson about the tea party. Because our ancestors decided to fight the Indians and needed help, they asked the British. When the British wanted repayment for there services for helping in the Indian wars we didn't want to pay. So the British decided to impose a stamp and tea tax. To re-collect what they were owed. The colonies had no choice but to dress up like Indians and destroy all the tea. Hey i guess we can't owe you something you don't have anymore...was their strategy.

    firethegop.com

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