Local tea party meeting Tuesday draws audience of more than 150

More than 150 people attended Tuesday night's Cape Girardeau County Tea Party organizational event at the Osage Community Centre.

Jeannie Hinck, committee board member for the group, said the objective of the tea party is restoring power to the American people, but each group can have varying ideas about how to achieve that goal.

"Every county may have something a little bit different in mind," she said. "For us, we don't want to abolish all social programs. We know that's a part of society. We need to retain our individual rights, or we're going to be in big trouble and we'll end up with being governed by people who are unscrupulous and corrupt."

The Cape Girardeau County Tea Party does not endorse candidates, and campaigning was not allowed at the event. However, that does not mean the group does not care about who is elected. Hinck said elected officials should adhere to the U.S. Constitution and voters should consider that when casting their ballot.

She said the group is growing and hopes to one day represent a larger section of society.

"We would like to become more diversified and ... be able to appeal to both the black and white communities together so we can be certain our legislatures are doing what is right for the people," Hinck said.

Tom Young of Jackson is active with the tea party and said the group has the chance to make some changes.

"Our group has one objective in mind and that is to combat the apathy in the United States. We have the chance of putting our country back on the right track. I would like to see them get back to the Constitution, period," he said.

Young said he believes programs being overseen by the federal government should be administered by the states.

"Under the Constitution 90 percent of what our federal government does today is unconstitutional. That includes Social Security and the Department of Education. I am not saying those programs are necessarily bad, but they need to be run by the state, not the federal government," he said.

He said defense and securing the country's borders should be the federal government's primary functions.

Brad Sherman, formerly of Advance, Mo., and founder of Iowa's Purpose Ministries, gave a presentation titled "Restoring the Power." Based on the belief that knowledge is the power to make intelligent choices, the program was about America's "exceptional" form of government and what citizens can do to help preserve it.

cbartholomew@semissourian.com

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