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The Tea Party member defy some stereotypes and meet others. AP Photo
CNN has released the first poll which looks at the demographic aspects of the people who support the Tea Party movement. At times some liberals have accused Tea Party members of being dumb, older white people who are caught up in the anti-government fury. The poll reveals that some of these assumptions are true while others are not.
First let us look at the positive aspects of the Tea Party supporters. They are actually more highly educated that the rest of the population. 40% of Tea Party supporters said they had a college degree while only 28% of the rest of the population could boast of such an accomplishment. In addition the Tea Party is actually not dominated by older people anymore than the rest of the population. The age demographic of the movement actually matches up almost exactly with the rest of the nation. 20% of Tea Party supporters are under the age of 20 and 60% of Tea Party members are under the age of 50. So when we talk about the educated elite in America that description actually fits Tea Party members more than Democrats.
The bad news for the Tea Party is that Keith Olbermann appears to have been correct when he accused them of lacking diversity. Only 2% of Tea Party supporters were African-American compared to 10% for the rest of respondents. 80% of Tea Party members identified themselves as "white."
The other demographics of the Tea Party are relatively neutral. It should come as no surprise that Tea Party members earn a higher income than the average American. 34% of Tea Party respondents made over $75,000 compared to just 25% for the other respondents. Just 8% of Tea Party supporters made less than $30,000 compared to 28% for the rest of the population. This demographic helps to explain the Tea Party's opposition to welfare programs and health care reform as both tend to favor the poor more than the rich. The Tea Party was also more Protestant than the rest of the country (68%-50%) and also dominated by males (60%) as compared to females. Not surprisingly there were 0% of Tea Party supporters identified themselves as transgender.
Comments
I question MSNBC's diversity. All their hosts are white.
And they are all men!
I thought "Rich" meant over $250,000 annually. That statistic wasn't identified. The author is a deceiver. What a surprise.
The left jumped to conclusions about their intelligence or lack thereof. Apparently they were wrong as usual. They'd better stick to their "Racist" label. They must have a "label" with which to identify the enemy.
why is label in quotes?
Just goes to show a college education doesn't mean a whole lot . Tea Panties are imbeciles and heartless at that.
"CNN poll of Tea Party reveals it to be dominated by white, highly educated, rich males"
So is the Democrat Party.
Trial lawyers are dominated by white, highly educated, white males. Democrats love them! I smell hypocricy. Makes me want to vomit.
Looks like the photo here is an accurate representation of the Tea Party then. Leftists are known for accuracy.
Observer says:
"Looks like the photo here is an accurate representation of the Tea Party then. Leftists are known for accuracy."
that's their Barefoot and Pregnant Brigade
Walrus is funny.
Isn't this is the same failed tactic the leftist cheerleaders in the mainstream media used last summer to try to marginalize any critics of Lord Barry, right before his poll numbers went right down the toilet?
Pretty funny the reaction here from the right to a mostly positive report on TEA Party demographics.
the tea party movement reminds me of the reason the civil war began, the confederacy and the tea party are alot alike. which is scary to think that people still think like that
"20% of Tea Party supporters are under the age of 20." Unless 20% of Tea Party supporters are ages 18-20, then their population would seem to include millions of children below the voting age. And if so, this fact would seem to require more explanation. Dare I say, some analysis? Surely, the millions of children covered by this survey - and who are almost never included in other surveys of political demographics - would artificially lower the age measures of Tea Partyers. Or am I missing something? Does anyone disagree with this?
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