Monthly Marianna Tea Party Meeting Another Huge Success

Guest Speaker, Rebecca O’Dell Townsend, gives an impressive address to over 200 attendees. By Sid Riley

The ‘Concerned American Patriots’ , the local element of the national Tea Party movement had their regular monthly meeting on Monday evening. The guest speaker for this event was Rebecca O’Dell Townsend, a St. Petersburg appellate attorney who practices before the U.S. Supreme Court. She delivered a very informative and stirring address on the history of the U.S. Constitution, how it evolved, what the founder’s intentions were, and how it has been distorted and abused by our government bodies since the nation began. This subject was very appropriate, since this was ‘U.S. Constitution’ week.

Over 200 patriotic and concerned local citizens assembled at the agricultural center on Highway 90 to demonstrate their willing involvement in protecting our rights and limiting the powers and continuing intrusion into their lives by governments. They signed political issue petitions, socialized, and listened to the inspiring speech delivered by the speaker.

“Every politician and appointee takes an oath of office”, she rigorously stated. “Within these oaths there is always a clause which includes the words, ‘I promise to defend and uphold the constitution of the United States’. In accepting this requirement they pledge to uphold the precepts of the Constitution even if legislated laws and Court rulings create actions which are in violation of the ideals specified in the Constitution. This is where our officials fail to meet the promises they made as they took those oaths”.

She stated that the promise to provide health care, housing, food, or even education does not exist in the Constitution. These are all man-made, legislated social programs with no constitutional foundation.

Rebecca reviewed how the Constitution had evolved from Anglo-Saxon laws and the experiences of our founders with the tyranny of the governments of England and Europe which were monarchies and dictatorships. She explained where the term “inalienable rights’ originated in the Magna Carta. After describing in detail the noble intentions of our founding fathers, their fear of the new nation evolving into a nation with an overpowering, oppressive federal government, and how they had attempted to severely limit the growth and power of the federal government, she detailed how they had ultimately failed in that attempt.

She challenged the audience to first become completely informed about the U.S. Constitution and the rights and limitations it represents. Then she encouraged them to inform others. Then she encouraged only voting for candidates who pledge to adhere to the Constitution as written. She also strongly encouraged the reading of “The 5000 Year Leap” by Cleon Skousen.

The meeting adjourned on schedule at 8:00 PM, but the crowd left better informed, and even more inspired to restore our nation to the kind of nation our forefathers wanted it to become. Once again, no locally elected officials attended the meeting.