--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in…" description: "\"“The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in 2010 and that implacably attacked Obama turned out to be a familiar nemesis of liberalism and the middle cla..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg" --- # The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in 2010 and that… ![“The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in 2010 and that implacably attacked Obama turned out to be a familiar nemesis of liberalism and the middle class—even if most of its street-level partisans were middle class themselves. Inextricably combining conservatism and racism, the Tea Party was almost…” quote by Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg) > ““The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in 2010 and that implacably attacked Obama turned out to be a familiar nemesis of liberalism and the middle class—even if most of its street-level partisans were middle class themselves. Inextricably combining conservatism and racism, the Tea Party was almost wholly a creature of rightwing dog whistle politics.”” [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Tea Party merged conservative politics with racial appeals, harming middle‑class interests. **In simple terms:** Conservatism mixed with racism hurt the middle class. Key Takeaway Beware of policies that hide racism behind class rhetoric. Themes politics racism class conservatism Mood critical analytical Type political commentary When to use this quote - election campaigns - policy debates - grassroots organizing Key Concepts dog whistle politics identity politics populism Questions to Reflect On - How do class and race intersect in political movements? - What safeguards protect middle‑class interests? A Different Perspective Rhetoric can be manipulated to mask true motives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conservatism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatism/) [Conservatism Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatism-racism-3915134/) [Liberalism Middle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberalism-middle-3915135/) [Middle class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-class/) [Nemesis Liberalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nemesis-liberalism-3915136/) [Racism Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism-tea-3915137/) [Tea party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tea-party/) ## Related quotes > [If racism is not the whole of the Tea Party, it is in its heart, along with blind hatred, a total disinterest in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/if-racism-is-not-the-whole-of-the-tea-party-it-is-in-its-heart-along/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [“Not everyone agrees with these descriptions of Buckley. Other writers on both the left and the right have suggested that contemporary conservatism is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-hawley/not-everyone-agrees-with-these-descriptions-of-buckley-other-writers/) [George Hawley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-hawley/) > [I think part of the reason the Tea Party has resonated is that people feel disempowered. The Tea Party says, "You are out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zephyr-teachout/i-think-part-of-the-reason-the-tea-party-has-resonated-is-that-people/) [Zephyr Teachout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zephyr-teachout/) > [If Republicans triumph in 2014, it will undoubtedly be as a result of Obamacare. In 2010, Republicans soared to historic victory because the much-maligned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/if-republicans-triumph-in-2014-it-will-undoubtedly-be-as-a-result-of/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [I was Tea Party years before there was an official Tea Party.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niger-innis/i-was-tea-party-years-before-there-was-an-official-tea-party/) [Niger Innis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niger-innis/) > [My fear is that the Tea Party gets a charismatic leader. Because all they're selling is fear and anger. And that's all Hitler sold.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-reiner/my-fear-is-that-the-tea-party-gets-a-charismatic-leader-because-all/) [Rob Reiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-reiner/) > [I think the Tea Party has brought enormous strength to the Republican Party and I absolutely support its fiscal responsibility message, yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-hoover/i-think-the-tea-party-has-brought-enormous-strength-to-the-republican/) [Margaret Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-hoover/) > [ I'm wary of government. Part of \[the Tea Party\] impulse is to dislike and be worried about the rich. I'm that way too. So… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-ayers/i-m-wary-of-government-part-of-the-tea-party-impulse-is-to-dislike/) [Bill Ayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-ayers/) > [It's really interesting that we've had this great Tea Party movement that is all about restoring free market capitalist values, but what they completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-taibbi/it-s-really-interesting-that-we-ve-had-this-great-tea-party-movement/) [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) > [The modern day anarchists known as the Tea Party, they believe in no government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-reid/the-modern-day-anarchists-known-as-the-tea-party-they-believe-in-no/) [Harry Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-reid/) > [There's a lot of things we can do to balance out what Obama's done and going forward show the American people the Republican Party…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-graham/there-s-a-lot-of-things-we-can-do-to-balance-out-what-obama-s-done/) [Lindsey Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-graham/) > [“The indoor picnic had been laid out in an octagonal-shaped sunroom featuring an atrium set in the center of the stone floor. Here a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/the-indoor-picnic-had-been-laid-out-in-an-octagonal-shaped-sunroom/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [Welcome to the Tea Party. Want to be my VIP? You didn't RSVP. That's ok, that's ok.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerli/welcome-to-the-tea-party-want-to-be-my-vip-you-didn-t-rsvp-that-s-ok/) [Kerli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerli/) > [People are starting to notice the great divide. The Tea party sees the aloofness in a political elite that thinks it knows best and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-murray/people-are-starting-to-notice-the-great-divide-the-tea-party-sees-the/) [Charles Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-murray/) > [In the Tea Party era, it is the restless conservative Republican who has become passion's plaything, the toy of impetuous romance, an erotomania only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-wolcott/in-the-tea-party-era-it-is-the-restless-conservative-republican-who/) [James Wolcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-wolcott/) ## More by Ian Haney López > [“Alabama in 1927 alone, 27,701 men were arrested on misdemeanor charges and offered for sale by county sheriffs. In Blackmon’s estimation, “roughly half of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/alabama-in-1927-alone-27-701-men-were-arrested-on-misdemeanor-charges/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“Start with the first half of Phillips’ statement, the claim that economic issues favored the Democrats when government programs “taxed the few for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/start-with-the-first-half-of-phillips-statement-the-claim-that/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“the confluence of racial prejudice and conservative politics is the new racism. It’s a product of almost a half-century of ethnic discourse and coded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/the-confluence-of-racial-prejudice-and-conservative-politics-is-the/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“When the children were asked how many white people were “mean,” they commonly answered “almost none.” But when asked how many blacks were mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/when-the-children-were-asked-how-many-white-people-were-mean-they/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“Kevin Phillips also saw clearly that success lay in stimulating racial antipathies among whites across the country. For Phillips, if there was a regional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/kevin-phillips-also-saw-clearly-that-success-lay-in-stimulating/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“Reagan Democrats increasingly extended their antipathy from nonwhites to government as a whole. “These white Democratic defectors express a profound distaste for blacks, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/reagan-democrats-increasingly-extended-their-antipathy-from-nonwhites/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“In the wake of 1984’s pummeling the Michigan Democratic Party commissioned Stanley Greenberg, then a political scientist and later a preeminent Democratic pollster, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/in-the-wake-of-1984-s-pummeling-the-michigan-democratic-party/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“After 2012, Republicans controlled all 11 state legislatures of the former Confederacy, and their campaign tactics centered more than ever on depicting themselves as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/after-2012-republicans-controlled-all-11-state-legislatures-of-the/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“We would like to believe that if the polity understood that race-baiting continues to be widely practiced, people would repudiate it. Yet many whites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/we-would-like-to-believe-that-if-the-polity-understood-that-race/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“The core insight of modern liberalism is powerfully simple: we all benefit from a society that provides for the economic security and wellbeing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/the-core-insight-of-modern-liberalism-is-powerfully-simple-we-all/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“Racial attacks on liberalism shifted the enemy of the middle class from big money to lazy minorities, and transmuted economic programs that helped to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/racial-attacks-on-liberalism-shifted-the-enemy-of-the-middle-class/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“Dog whistling comes out of the South and its preoccupation with blacks, but it always involved equal opportunity racism, and never more so than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/dog-whistling-comes-out-of-the-south-and-its-preoccupation-with/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“This is not to portray race as simply one among many issues, each with equal weight; instead, race has been the principal weapon in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/this-is-not-to-portray-race-as-simply-one-among-many-issues-each-with/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“In 1963, Robert Novak had written that many Republican leaders were intent on converting the Party of Lincoln into the White Man’s Party. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/in-1963-robert-novak-had-written-that-many-republican-leaders-were/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) > [“Even so, unlike most in society, these politicians thought long and deep about how to turn race to their advantage. We’ve previously defined strategic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/even-so-unlike-most-in-society-these-politicians-thought-long-and/) [Ian Haney López](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) [Explore all 23 Ian Haney López quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/) ## More Conservatism quotes > [Conservatism is not about leaving people behind. Conservatism is about empowering people to catch up, to give them the tools at their disposable that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/conservatism-is-not-about-leaving-people-behind-conservatism-is-about/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [“Conservatism aims to maintain in working order the loyalties of the community to perceived truths and also to those truths which in their judgment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-f-buckley-jr-2/conservatism-aims-to-maintain-in-working-order-the-loyalties-of-the/) [William F. Buckley Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-f-buckley-jr-2/) > [Conservative feminism is such an artificial term that doesn't mean much to me. For me conservatism means accepting reality. I acknowledge that there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristina-schroder/conservative-feminism-is-such-an-artificial-term-that-doesn-t-mean/) [Kristina Schroder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristina-schroder/) > [Conservatism is affecting the way women perceive who they are in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/conservatism-is-affecting-the-way-women-perceive-who-they-are-in-the/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [Admirers can be a tremendous force for conservatism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-eno/admirers-can-be-a-tremendous-force-for-conservatism/) [Brian Eno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-eno/) > [Conservatism defends those coercive arrangements which a still-lingering savageness makes requisite. Radicalism endeavours to realize a state more in harmony with the character of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/conservatism-defends-those-coercive-arrangements-which-a-still/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [Conservatism is about the basic rights of individuals. God created us. As far as the government goes, the Founding Fathers based the Constitution off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-wurzelbacher/conservatism-is-about-the-basic-rights-of-individuals-god-created-us/) [Joe Wurzelbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-wurzelbacher/) > [A liberal is only a bundle of prejudices until he has mastered, has understood, experienced the philosophy of Conservatism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/a-liberal-is-only-a-bundle-of-prejudices-until-he-has-mastered-has/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [“At the time, he told his children to watch themselves, to understand that the tides of conservatism came and went and if they could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/at-the-time-he-told-his-children-to-watch-themselves-to-understand/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Conservatism is the worship of dead revolutions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-rossiter/conservatism-is-the-worship-of-dead-revolutions/) [Clinton Rossiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clinton-rossiter/) > [Weirdly, there have been a lot of critics of conservatism, but very few critics of innovation. As a culture, we are deeply paranoid about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/weirdly-there-have-been-a-lot-of-critics-of-conservatism-but-very-few/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [“It's almost hard to imagine anything more undemocratic than the view that political officials should not debate American wars in public, but only express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/it-s-almost-hard-to-imagine-anything-more-undemocratic-than-the-view/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [The need of black conservatives to gain the respect of their white peers deeply shapes certain elements of their conservatism. In this regard, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-need-of-black-conservatives-to-gain-the-respect-of-their-white/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Social and cultural change, however desirable, should not be effected by the engines of national power. Let us, through persuasion and education, seek to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/social-and-cultural-change-however-desirable-should-not-be-effected/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [If Theresa May is big enough to admit her mistakes and put a kinder Conservatism into the heart of her government, she may survive,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-soubry/if-theresa-may-is-big-enough-to-admit-her-mistakes-and-put-a-kinder/) [Anna Soubry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-soubry/) [Browse all 522 Conservatism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in 2010 and that implacably attacked Obama turned out to be a familiar nemesis of liberalism and the middle class—even if most of its street-level partisans were middle class themselves. Inextricably combining conservatism and racism, the Tea Party was almost wholly a creature of rightwing dog whistle politics.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ian Haney López" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-in-2010-and-that-implacably/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conservatism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-in-2010-and-that-implacably/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d9/ian-haney-l-pez-25230_conservatism_the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-i_447786.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Tea Party that reenergized the GOP in 2010 and that implacably attacked Obama turned out to be a…” — Ian Haney López", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ian Haney López", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-haney-l-pez/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The Tea Party that reenergized the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-in-2010-and-that-implacably/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-haney-l-pez/the-tea-party-that-reenergized-the-gop-in-2010-and-that-implacably/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```