Teabagging in Charlottesville - Part I

At least 1,500 motivated citizens and liberty-oriented activists crowded under the lobster-trap-like canopy of the Pavilion on the east end of Charlottesville's downtown mall on Wednesday. While shelter from the cold drizzle and grey skies may have been one reason for being there, the primary reason was to raise their voices in protest against a government that is growing into an even bigger Leviathan than it has been.

Considering that liberal Charlottesville is one of the bluest areas in an increasingly blue Virginia, the size of the crowd was unexpected. Parking was at a premium. (The Market Street parking garage was full and on-street parking was virtually non-existent. Even the Water Street garage, several blocks away from the site of the rally, was more than three-quarters full.) One speaker, Delegate Rob Bell (who represents the same district in Central Virginia that was once represented by Thomas Jefferson) said he was told to expect about 50 or 60 people. Others commented that a maximum of 200 would be an achievement.

How wrong they were!

It was not just about numbers, however. The event brought together a coalition of citizen activists whose backgrounds could be characterized as conservative, libertarian, or (previously) apathetic. There were signs touting Bob McDonnell for Governor. Another sign, echoing Sarah Palin, said "Read My Lipstick!" Some in the crowd had supported Ron Paul for President last year, others John McCain, still others LP candidate Bob Barr, and some had voted for Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution Party. There were high school students and pensioners, blue-collar workers and executives, radio hosts and elected officials.

The event was non-partisan and lived up to that. There were no calls from the podium to vote for specific candidates this fall, although master of ceremonies Joe Thomas of radio station WCHV-AM urged everyone to get out and vote and send a message to incumbent officeholders by voting them out of office if they are not doing all they can to reduce government spending and the taxes that go along with bloated government.

Because I had to drive around looking for a parking place, I missed the first 20 minutes or so of the 3-hour rally. I arrived just in time to see former U.S. Secretary of State Lawrence S. Eagleburger address the crowd, and I managed to capture his remarks on video:

Secretary Eagleburger, a resident of the Charlottesville area, was followed by John Taylor, who lives in Northern Virginia and is president of the Virginia Institute for Public Policy and Tertium Quids. Taylor is well-known as a grassroots organizer for issues that affect Virginia voters and taxpayers. Taylor spoke longer than Eagleburger, so his remarks are divided into two video segments:

After he left the stage, Taylor headed to Richmond, where he was scheduled to address that city's Tea Party at around 6:00 p.m.

During an interlude, Joe Thomas took an opportunity to tell a joke at the expense of Charlottesville's City Hall (did this rally really look like a Dave Matthews Band concert?) and to urge the crowd to continue the fight beyond tax day:

Thomas then introduced youthful activist Karin Agness, a law student at the University of Virginia and founder of the Network of Enlightened Women, who addressed the enthusiastic crowd on topics of concern to her generation:

I will have more video tomorrow -- this stuff takes time to edit into easily digestible segments! -- as well as more photos from the Charlottesville Tea Party.

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