Chicago Tea Party: Belated Revolt Against Stimulus Spending

CNBC's Rick Santelli captured the sentiments of many Americans when he stood on the floor of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) this morning and announced plans for a Chicago Tea Party in July to protest stimulus spending. Asked by CNBC's anchor what he would dump in Lake Michigan during the Chicago Tea Party, Santelli resourcefully took advantage of his surroundings, exclaiming "derivative securities."

In what began as a spontaneous outburst against stimulus spending, but quickly took on the air of a publicity stunt, Santelli asked traders preparing for the exchange's opening to voice their opinions of stimulus provisions that use tax dollars for mortgage relief. Prodded by Santelli as to whether they would willingly pay their neighbors' mortgages, the traders erupted in spontaneous boos.

The conservative National Review lauded Santelli's Chicago Tea Party speech, saying that mortgage bailouts will reward bad behavior and teach children that the consequences of their actions are avoidable. The National Review contends that the stimulus bill's mortgage relief plan is doomed to failure. It says too few will qualify and many will default even with the stimulus help. National Review also contends that new home buyers will face higher interest rates to compensate for the losses associated with the mortgage relief provided on existing loans.

Santelli told the National Review that the response to his Chicago Tea Party speech has been overwhelmingly favorable, with only about 3 of 850-900 emails opposing his viewpoint. Santelli objects to the government picking winners and losers, contending that "You have to figure out a way to float all boats, and I think that's where the administration has gone wrong, and I think that's the nerve I hit."

Hit a nerve Santelli did. 94% of more than 204,000 responders in a CNBC poll said yes when asked whether they would want to join Santelli's Chicago Tea Party. 5% said no, and 1.5% said they were unsure whether they would want to join the Chicago Tea Party.

Where were all these people, I wonder, when Congress passed the stimulus legislation less than two weeks ago? Instead of a Chicago Tea Party in July, Santelli and compatriots might have considered a Washington Tea Party in February, dumping Congressional copies of the stimulus plan into the Potomac.

Sources: http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1039849853&play=1; http://blog.heritage.org/2009/02/20/morning-bell-the-chicago-tea-party/; http://wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=89384; http://www.cnbc.com/id/29283701.