New Trends in American Politics: Coffee or Tea?

The American government system, which has always been dominated by two major parties, might be forced to take notice of the Tea Party and the Coffee Party.

As a quickly emerging grassroots conservative movement in America, the Tea Party has been continuously shaking the resolve of the Democratic and Republican Parties. On May 18, in a recent example of the Tea Party’s rise to success, Tea Party leader Rand Paul won the Republican primaries, defeating his Republican-supported opponent. This left both major parties flabbergasted.

Most people still think the Tea Party is a new word, but this isn’t the first time it has showed its strength. On April 15, America’s deadline for filing personal taxes, almost a million Tea Party members in 800 cities walked the streets, protesting against Obama’s fiscal policy and tax policy. Last year, in September, tens of thousands of angry Tea Party protesters gathered near the Capitol, criticizing Obama’s health care reform program and spending plans.

Furthermore, the Tea Party has already shown its ability to attack in elections. In Utah, Senator Bob Bennett lost the Republican primaries, which in large part was due to the fact that many Tea Party members said he was not conservative enough. In Florida, Marco Rubio gained the support of members of the Tea Party and held a substantial lead in Republican Party primary opinion polls over the incumbent, Governor Charlie Crist, forcing Crist to leave the Republican Party.

How was the Tea Party movement formed? This name was taken from the Boston Tea Party, a protest led by American colonists against England on the eve of the American War of Independence. Last February, a television reporter began an aggressive attack against Obama’s move to provide aid to mortgage loan companies. He called on the people to establish a Tea Party to copy the colonists who dumped English taxed tea into Boston Harbor in 1773, triggering the American War of Independence. There is another layer of meaning in this name: Using the first letters of the phrase “Taxed Enough Already!” one can spell “tea.” For this reason, the main focuses of the tea party are opposing big government, opposing increased taxes, and opposing the economic stimulus plans lead by the Democratic government.

There is another party that has stepped onto America’s political stage called the Coffee Party. Using Facebook to organize, this group already had 40,000 members as of February of this year, and the number is rapidly growing.

The Tea Party and the Coffee Party have many differences; in truth, the establishment of the Coffee Party was merely a reaction to the Tea Party. However, it is important to note that they were both created in order to reflect the true feelings of the American people. The Tea Party claims it wants to "Take Back America," while the Coffee Party’s slogan is "Wake Up, Stand Up," but they are both showing their dissatisfaction with current politics.

During the economic crisis, Wall Street and Detroit, two clear symbols of American prosperity, both fell. When the government used the tax-payer's money to save banks and big business, many Americans were angry, and started to identify with the Tea Party and the Coffee Party. These dissatisfied and angry emotions found fertile soil in which to take root.

Granted, the Tea Party and the Coffee Party are both loose associations that cannot have much influence because all third parties in America have difficulty affecting politics. However, even though they look amateurish, they still might influence the political situation and their arrival might have an impact on the two party system.

A survey showed that 41 percent of American adults supported the Tea Party movement. Furthermore, 35 percent of Democrats supported the movement, while only 28 percent of Republicans do. At the same time, more and more Americans are abandoning the traditional meaning of political party — nearly 40 percent of voters say they are non-affiliated. In contrast, members of the conservative faction are not necessarily loyal to the “tea party” of either political party even though they oppose the liberal Democrats.

This might play into the hands of the Republicans during the upcoming midterm elections. Otherwise, the emergence of the Tea Party might mean that the conservative faction of the Republican Party will split. The more conservative Tea Party movement could help push the Republican Party to become even more conservative.