Candidates seek area tea party's support at rally

A dozen candidates stood in a chilly wind on Independence Mall on Saturday, attempting to woo members of the Independence Hall Tea Party, who are moving beyond protesting to making political endorsements.

At a two-hour-plus gathering organized by the tea party's new political action committee, men and women it identified as the top "limited government" congressional candidates criticized big government, big deficits, high taxes, the new health-care plan, and illegal immigrants.

They vowed to take back the federal government and the country and to boot out House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and President Obama. They outdid one another with memorable greetings. "Happy anniversary, fellow revolutionaries," said Christine O'Donnell, who is running for the Senate in Delaware and wants to shake up the "lords of the back room." She was referring to the one-year anniversary marked by some tea party groups.

"Hello, all you patriots," said Pat Sellers, who is challenging Republican Rep. Jim Gerlach in Pennsylvania's Sixth District. He wants to stop giving citizenship and free services to babies born in this country to illegal immigrants and said the country could do without the federal Departments of Education and Energy.

The rally drew several hundred people, most of them middle-aged and polite. Some carried signs: "You Work for Us" and "Let Me Be Clear. Change Is Coming to America Nov. 2" and "Seal Our Borders. No Amnesty for Lawbreakers."

One woman held a poster with a picture of Obama with a cigarette in his mouth and the words: He thinks he knows what is best for our health care. Oh come on.

Don Adams, president of the Independence Hall Tea Party PAC, got the crowd to chant, "Take back Congress!"

"Obviously, it's not enough for us to just protest," Adams said before the event. "We have to vote. It's extremely important that we organize politically and that we take back Congress if we're going to have any modicum of success."

Joey Vento, of "speak English" cheesesteak fame, was also a speaker.

"I don't know about you, but I want America back," he said. The crowd agreed. He said America needed to get rid of illegal immigrants and likened calling them "undocumented" to "calling a drug dealer an unlicensed pharmacist."

Before his opening prayer, the Rev. Bill Devlin, president of Redeem the Vote, chided former President Bill Clinton for his comments Friday about the danger of antigovernment rhetoric that Clinton said was heard by "the serious and the delirious alike."

After referring to Clinton's denial that he had had sex with Monica Lewinsky, Devlin said: "All I see is people who love America. . . . Please don't tell us we're delirious. Don't tell us we're terrorists. We love America."

The political speakers included several candidates running for Pennsylvania's Eighth Congressional District seat, now held by Democrat Patrick Murphy - James Jones, Gloria Carlineo, Ira Hoffman, and Mike Fitzpatrick - along with Rep. Charlie Dent, Josh Quinter, and Patrick Meehan, who are running in other Pennsylvania districts. From New Jersey, there were Dale Glading, Mark Falzon, and Jon Runyan, a former Eagles offensive lineman who is running for the Third Congressional District seat, now held by Democrat John Adler.

"Just like all of you standing out here, I'm fed up with what these career politicians are doing in this country," Runyan said. He said taxes were out of control, the stimulus bill didn't work, and people were confused by the health-care overhaul. "We really need to get people like Nancy Pelosi out of office today."

Runyan said he was used to having a playbook after his years in sports. Now, he said, he has a new playbook, waving a pocket-size Constitution.

"When you deviate from the playbook, you get your butt kicked by everybody around you," he said. "We need to return to this to turn this country around and give the power back to the people."

Members of the crowd said they were worried about health care and government spending.

"I have two daughters, four granddaughters, and I want them to have the America I grew up in," said Mike Peck, 56 of Croydon. "I feel like they're going to get buried in debt that's being created."

He said he agreed with the local organizers that it was time to focus on candidates who "have the values right," whether they're Democrats or Republicans.