Les Blumenthal’s odd little phrase

I ran into this news story today, on GOP prospects and hopes that 2010 will be like 1994.  A very odd little phrase jumped out at me as a little false.

One wild card this year is the Tea Party movement, with its talk of “Sovereignty: The 10th Amendment” and “Put Ronnie on the Rock,” a reference to putting Ronald Reagan’s face on Mount Rushmore. Organizers say there are no plans of turning the movement into an actual political party and it will remain loosely organized.

“I am a little leery of politicians, even conservative ones,” said Ken Morse, an organizer of the Olympia Tea Party. “I want to keep our nonpartisan status alive.”

Republicans hope to attract Tea Party supporters and downplay concerns that the movement could move their party too far to the right.

“We have more to gain than lose by working with the Tea Party,” GOP Chairman Esser said.

“Put Ronnie on the Rock” is a tenant of the Tea Party movement?
I go to google news.  I look the phrase up to see this discussion of “Put Ronnie on the Rocks”.  I see this news article.  No other.

I go to google blogs.  I look the phrase up to see the discussion of “Put Ronnie on the Rocks”.  I see bump and kis.

I look up on google.  I see a bad personal website (not that there’s anything wrong with that) with vacation photos — and I am at a loss as to whether they are promoting sticking that Ronnie up on Mt Rushmore.  And once upon a time, someone chimed in on this message board with

MSNBC – Race & Ethnicity message board – How would everyone feel

12 posts - 8 authors - Last post: May 27, 2008
Until they put Ronnie on the rock, nobody should go up there. Crazy Horse is coming along just fine. How about someone find a different rock
And that is all.
“Put Ron on the Rock” brings in more hits.  Apparently a bit better defined, something proposed by Rep. Salmon of Arizona. While I see some sentiment and signing off posts with the phrase at free republic, I overall see fewer than 30 pages.
Conclusion: the proposal to stick Ronald Reagan’s face on Mount Rushmore is not animating the “Tea Party Movement”.  Les Blumenthal has pulled something almost out of his ass, but not quite: I imagine a single conversation  then  fitted and expanded to fit a broader category.
And, yes, I believe to be valid, that phrase, and that phrase only — I won’t settle for the sentiment or project behind it, has to be spotted somewhere connected with official tea partydom.

Leave a Reply