Des Moines Tea Party

I attended the Des Moines Tax Day Tea Party today (you can watch KCCI Channel 8 coverage here).  I was blown away.  Eric Goranson, one of the contributors was there with me, and who he has been to a number of these protests told me that this was, by far, the largest he has seen.  I saw a good number of people I knew, and it was fun.  I am guessing around 2500 3000 (KCCI reporting an Iowa State Patrol estimate).  And contrary to what one commenter suggested in a previous post we were not overrun by white supremacists.  I didn’t see ANY (skinheads or signs with racial slurs).

The great thing about this rally, no politicians spoke.  It was all grassroots.  Just ordinary people, a small town pastor, a disabled vet, a small business owner, a college student, a couple of kids, and many more.  The only speaker that I knew was Tamara Scott, who leads the Iowa Chapter of Concerned Women of America.  There were many comments made about the Department of Homeland Security’s recent report, the Iowa Gay Marriage ruling (in which I attended a rally last week and saw another one on Monday), but most of the comments were directed at taxes and spending spree that our state and federal governments are having.

I took some pictures, and you can look at the album here or watch the slideshow below.

Update: Herd on the Hill – the Iowa Senate Republican Caucus blog posted this video.