Good Evening...It is my honor and pleasure to be with you here on the state house lawn...on Tax Freedom Day...April 15th 2010...and in a little over a year...We've come along way baby!
How many of you assembled here tonight were at last years Tax Day Tea Party?....... Please Give yourselves a round of applause!
How many here tonight are attending there first tax day tea party?....... Can we get a big round of applause for these folks! Welcome! Thank you for coming!
A lot of people are scared about the direction that our state and country are moving, some are depressed ....I can tell you that I am not depressed I am excited, I am not scared I am focused ...and I am that way because I see all of you here today! I am emboldened because I know that I am not alone! Tea Party Patriots...It is an exciting time to be awake in America...
Generations will look back on a group of Americans, A group of Vermonters who rose up and stopped the be everything to everyone, tax and spend, big government politicians who charted a devastating course for our state and our republic.
Tonight I want to speak to you about a man...the aforementioned politicians would claim that this man is nothing special. Oh how wrong they are!
He is an average ordinary man, he has a couple kids and a house, he's worked hard to do the very best he can to care for his family. He is not a rich man but he pays his Bills...... He contributes to his community. It wasn't always easy but this man made the right choices and wouldn't even think of asking the government for help. In fact he helps his neighbors when they are having difficulties. He is a believer in the American Dream...He knows that when you get knocked down you pull yourself back up by the bootstraps and you try again. He is the Forgotten Man.
The Forgotten Man is married to the Forgotten Woman and together they raise the forgotten children.
Does The Forgotten Man Sound Familiar To You? He should...Because he is you!
Thanks to FDR The Forgotten man is a term generally used to describe those at the bottom of the economic pyramid. FDR's use of the term to help launch his "new deal"...A deal in which progressive policies bloomed and the entitlement programs blossomed....in fact during the great depression....every thing government related blossomed...Big Government Was the Answer and the only thing that didn't grow was America's economy.
But FDR's Use of The Term was not its original intent. The term was first notably used by Yale professor William Graham Sumner, His algebraic definition of the forgotten man was that "A" observes something which seems to him to be wrong, from which "X" is suffering, "A" talks it over with "B", and "A" and "B" then propose to get a law passed to remedy the evil and help "X". Their law always proposes to determine what "C" shall do for "X!"
Summner wrote that the Forgotten man is the man who never is thought of. He is the victim of the reformer, social speculator and philanthropist, He deserves your notice both for his character and for the many burdens which are laid upon him.
Sumner continued that the Forgotten Man is the simple, honest laborer, ready to earn his living by productive work. We pass him by because he is independent, self-supporting, and asks no favors. He does not appeal to the emotions or excite the sentiments. He only wants to make a contract and fulfill it.
All of You Assembled Today...Are Forgotten People....You are the middle...the group that defines Vermont, The Group That Defines America! You Are The Ones That Keep The State and The Country Running! You Are Not The Recipient of The Largess Of Government. Tonight you have found your way here to the Vermont Statehouse...You have found your way to The Tea Party! If you're new...I have to tell you...we throw some great parties!
Why have you come?
Some might say that you have come to stop the bailouts and handouts; some might say that you've come to defeat Big Government takeovers. Some have come to defend the personal liberties and freedoms that we as Americans hold so dear!
But I can some it up differently...
You have found the Tea Party because all of you share the same principles and Ideals...it is not the things that the politicians use to divide us in Vermont and In America that you concern yourself with. It's not race, religion or sexual preference. It's not economic class or gender.
We the People...The Forgotten People...Are bound by a set of beliefs that are rooted in the teachings of our founders.
We believe in a return to first principles, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness!
Small Government, Belief in a Higher Power, the Importance of Family and Hard Work!
We Are the Largest Group of Americans without representation in Government!
It seems every group in this country has a lobbyist in Washington, except The Forgotten Man.
You are invisible to your government. The only time they pay attention to you is when there is an election...and an election is coming this November....I think it's time that the forgotten man forgets to Vote for non-representing representatives and chooses someone new on the ballot. Someone who shares the values that we spoke of earlier.
Because You are no longer a citizen in the eyes of your government...you are a source of revenue!
You are the people who are repeatedly the monetary resource for wasteful spending and irresponsible social programs; programs for which you will never qualify as beneficiary only benefactor. Your ethic and investment is what drives the state and the nation, but when You are broken down and stranded, passersby look on you with perpetual pity and disdain.
The forgotten man is mocked, criticized, neglected and silenced.
In the past....this strategy has worked...until now!
Because We Will focus our energies and resources where we can make a difference! On This Tax Day we will be seen and heard. Not by a bunch of people who already agree with us, but by the forgotten man who is not yet awake! Much like you he goes to work, pays his mortgage, and feels helpless to do anything about a ruthless government who doesn't hesitate to steal the fruits of his labors.
Let him know that there are others in his community who think and feel the way that he does. And, This day as we stand with forgotten peoples from all over the country, Let it be known that we will lead our communities, our states and our country back to the founding principles of our Constitution.
The truth of the matter is, our Congressmen and Senators are SUPPOSED to be our lobbyists and represent us, but currently they only represent themselves. The time is now for us to take action and tonight here on The Statehouse lawn you have found a lobbyist...you have found a friend to weather the storm.....That Friend is The Vermont Tea Party and together forgotten families from all over Vermont with forgotten families from all over America remind our local, state and federal officials that we WILL NOT be forgotten!
