---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You know, the Tea Party is a - first of…"
description: "\"You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a significant movement, and I think the media and some pundits have tried to write it off as a bunch..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg"
---

#  You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a…

![“You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a significant movement, and I think the media and some pundits have tried to write it off as a bunch of cranks or something. But, in fact, it's really a very legitimate and fairly significant swath of voters out there.” quote by Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg)

> “You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a significant movement, and I think the media and some pundits have tried to write it off as a bunch of cranks or something. But, in fact, it's really a very legitimate and fairly significant swath of voters out there.”

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

## 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 is a significant, legitimate voter movement despite media dismissal.

**In simple terms:** Movement is real despite criticism.

Key Takeaway

Acknowledge diverse political voices.

Themes

politics media movement

Mood

analytical defensive

Type

political informative

When to use this quote

- campaign strategy
- media literacy
- voter outreach

Key Concepts

sociology public opinion democracy

Questions to Reflect On

- How to fairly represent fringe movements?
- What impact do media narratives have?

A Different Perspective

Oversimplification can occur.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/media/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/) [Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tea/) [Tea party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tea-party/) [Voters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voters/)

## Related quotes

> [There's significant movement as far to the left in our party as far as you can go, where people are trying to out-Bernie Bernie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-lightfoot/there-s-significant-movement-as-far-to-the-left-in-our-party-as-far/)

[Lori Lightfoot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-lightfoot/)

> [I may never get my own action figure, but at least I think what I'm doing is really legitimate musically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-degraw/i-may-never-get-my-own-action-figure-but-at-least-i-think-what-i-m/)

[Gavin DeGraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-degraw/)

> [The Republican Party needs to, first of all, quit electing people in primaries that have prehistoric notions about women's issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/the-republican-party-needs-to-first-of-all-quit-electing-people-in/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [And today more than ever, knowing about that society involves first of all choosing what approach the inquiry will take, and that necessarily means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-francois-lyotard/and-today-more-than-ever-knowing-about-that-society-involves-first-of/)

[Jean-Francois Lyotard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-francois-lyotard/)

> [Well first of all, I think the phrase 'jump the shark' has jumped the shark. I read it in every article and I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-edelstein/well-first-of-all-i-think-the-phrase-jump-the-shark-has-jumped-the/)

[Lisa Edelstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-edelstein/)

> [I don't really believe in elegance. Ever since I first came to France many years ago to do the Chambre Syndicale course, I always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-menkes/i-don-t-really-believe-in-elegance-ever-since-i-first-came-to-france/)

[Suzy Menkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-menkes/)

> [The studio is meant to be always a place where, first of all, they can be out of spotlight, and second, where they could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lipton/the-studio-is-meant-to-be-always-a-place-where-first-of-all-they-can/)

[James Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lipton/)

> [First of all, CIA follows the law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-haspel/first-of-all-cia-follows-the-law/)

[Gina Haspel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-haspel/)

> ['L.A. Law' has been a bit of a blessing and a curse. First of all, it was a very prestigious show that had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corbin-bernsen/l-a-law-has-been-a-bit-of-a-blessing-and-a-curse-first-of-all-it-was/)

[Corbin Bernsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corbin-bernsen/)

> [Since I am first of all a character writer, that character's emotions are as vivid to me as my own. I always begin with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-hinton/since-i-am-first-of-all-a-character-writer-that-character-s-emotions/)

[S. E. Hinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-hinton/)

> [Music, first of all, is completely about abstraction, which is exactly what architecture is not. In a way, it has been incredibly constructive to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-vinoly/music-first-of-all-is-completely-about-abstraction-which-is-exactly/)

[Rafael Vinoly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-vinoly/)

> [I think, first of all, you know, Washington has a bad habit of a very short attention span.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-mccaskill/i-think-first-of-all-you-know-washington-has-a-bad-habit-of-a-very/)

[Claire McCaskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-mccaskill/)

> [I was a musician first of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-blue/i-was-a-musician-first-of-all/)

[Jonas Blue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-blue/)

> [First of all, I think that is true, if you are a musician, particularly on the come, that you do have to end up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sebastian/first-of-all-i-think-that-is-true-if-you-are-a-musician-particularly/)

[John Sebastian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sebastian/)

> [Our fashion for us, it's an expression; first of all of life, I put all of myself in my fashion. Sometimes it's good, sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefano-gabbana/our-fashion-for-us-it-s-an-expression-first-of-all-of-life-i-put-all/)

[Stefano Gabbana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefano-gabbana/)

## More by Mark McKinnon

> [Politics only makes the difficult challenge of marriage even harder, with the demands of the job and the public spotlight it casts on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/politics-only-makes-the-difficult-challenge-of-marriage-even-harder/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [It's just madness. First email. Then instant message. Then MySpace. Then Facebook. Then LinkedIn. Then Twitter. It's not enough anymore to 'Just do it.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/it-s-just-madness-first-email-then-instant-message-then-myspace-then/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [One thing is clear: Ron Paul defies labels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/one-thing-is-clear-ron-paul-defies-labels/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Mitt Romney is a nice guy. But, we know where nice guys finish in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/mitt-romney-is-a-nice-guy-but-we-know-where-nice-guys-finish-in/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Sarah Palin is brilliant. She is a media magnet and a media magnate. She creates headlines and draws crowds wherever she goes, whether it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/sarah-palin-is-brilliant-she-is-a-media-magnet-and-a-media-magnate/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [I'm no economist. I don't even play one on TV. I'm just a husband, a father, a taxpayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/i-m-no-economist-i-don-t-even-play-one-on-tv-i-m-just-a-husband-a/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Republicans constantly claim to be the party that defends the Constitution. We have no legitimate right to that claim until we get right on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/republicans-constantly-claim-to-be-the-party-that-defends-the/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [If we cannot come together to pause, to respect our dead and the heroic lives of meaning they led, then ours is truly a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/if-we-cannot-come-together-to-pause-to-respect-our-dead-and-the/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [People who know Paul Ryan say, 'He will be president one day.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/people-who-know-paul-ryan-say-he-will-be-president-one-day/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Every president becomes a caricature. The press, partisans, late-night shows, and other arbiters of our culture these days boil down complicated and multi-faceted personalities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/every-president-becomes-a-caricature-the-press-partisans-late-night/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Now personally, I think the president should golf every day and never have a press conference. I want the leader of the free world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/now-personally-i-think-the-president-should-golf-every-day-and-never/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [In politics, not all lies are all lies. And not all truths are complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/in-politics-not-all-lies-are-all-lies-and-not-all-truths-are-complete/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [There's no question that many factors contribute to voters' perceptions about debates and who wins and who loses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/there-s-no-question-that-many-factors-contribute-to-voters/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Presidential primary debates are an important part of our political process. But the media has wrested complete control from the parties and candidates over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/presidential-primary-debates-are-an-important-part-of-our-political/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [Sometime in the not too distant future, denying gays the right to marry will be viewed as historically corrupt - as corrupt as denying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/sometime-in-the-not-too-distant-future-denying-gays-the-right-to/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

[Explore all 138 Mark McKinnon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

## More Bunch quotes

> [At the drop of a hat, people will say there are no roles for women after 40. It's there with a bunch of other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-nicol/at-the-drop-of-a-hat-people-will-say-there-are-no-roles-for-women/)

[Lesley Nicol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-nicol/)

> [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/)

[Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/)

> [I started off playing by ear, and being around a bunch of musicians and playing in the streets and in the different parades and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-andrews/i-started-off-playing-by-ear-and-being-around-a-bunch-of-musicians/)

[Troy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-andrews/)

> [As the light changed from red to green to yellow and back to red again, I sat there thinking about life. Was it nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-the-light-changed-from-red-to-green-to-yellow-and-back-to-red/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [In summer, my Sundays are often taken up with cricket. I play with a bunch of other over-competitive and overenthusiastic guys who I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elliot/in-summer-my-sundays-are-often-taken-up-with-cricket-i-play-with-a/)

[Ben Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elliot/)

> [There's when a phrase circles in my head in a number of ways for any number of days, weeks, or months, and then that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mangan/there-s-when-a-phrase-circles-in-my-head-in-a-number-of-ways-for-any/)

[Dan Mangan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mangan/)

> [Do you know what it is sir? Do you know what the Dance Dance Revolution is? It's not an actual revolution, so you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-peters/do-you-know-what-it-is-sir-do-you-know-what-the-dance-dance/)

[Russell Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-peters/)

> [I would say my fraternity was nothing but a bunch of farm boys; we weren't really in the whole fraternity scene, but yeah, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-would-say-my-fraternity-was-nothing-but-a-bunch-of-farm-boys-we/)

[Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/)

> [In a way, we are magicians. We are alchemists, sorcerers and wizards. We are a very strange bunch. But there is great fun in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-joel/in-a-way-we-are-magicians-we-are-alchemists-sorcerers-and-wizards-we/)

[Billy Joel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-joel/)

> [Rita folded her arms around herself and peered up at me. “If you’d asked me three months ago I’d have said you were hitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-e-murphy/rita-folded-her-arms-around-herself-and-peered-up-at-me-if-you-d/)

[C.E. Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-e-murphy/)

> [I always wanted to be in a band with a bunch of dudes who loved Green Day and all that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashton-irwin/i-always-wanted-to-be-in-a-band-with-a-bunch-of-dudes-who-loved-green/)

[Ashton Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashton-irwin/)

> [No one has it all figured out, especially not the people who are acting like they do and judging you because of it. Pretending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-max/no-one-has-it-all-figured-out-especially-not-the-people-who-are/)

[Tucker Max](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-max/)

> [All of my work is meant to evoke a whole bunch of different layers of discord between the attraction and repulsion that we feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/all-of-my-work-is-meant-to-evoke-a-whole-bunch-of-different-layers-of/)

[Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/)

> [Through the music I hope to give it an arc that gives it a greater sense of a journey through the set rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gotye/through-the-music-i-hope-to-give-it-an-arc-that-gives-it-a-greater/)

[Gotye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gotye/)

> [America, to me, should be shouting all the time, a bunch of shouting voices, most of them wrong, some of them nuts, but please,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/america-to-me-should-be-shouting-all-the-time-a-bunch-of-shouting/)

[George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/)

Browse all 2,008 Bunch quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a significant movement, and I think the media and some pundits have tried to write it off as a bunch of cranks or something. But, in fact, it's really a very legitimate and fairly significant swath of voters out there.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mark McKinnon"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all-it-is-a-significant-movement/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bunch"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all-it-is-a-significant-movement/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a92/mark-mckinnon-3139_bunch_you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all_3019532.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a significant movement, and I think the media and some…” — Mark McKinnon",
                "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": "Mark McKinnon",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "You know, the Tea Party is...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all-it-is-a-significant-movement/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/you-know-the-tea-party-is-a-first-of-all-it-is-a-significant-movement/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
