WaPo Writer Attempts to Kickstart New 'Grassroots' Coffee Party Via Another Name

July 10th, 2010 10:39 PM

Psst!

Two words that dare not escape the pen of Washington Post writer Krissah Thompson: "Coffee Party."

Yes, Ms Thompson writes yet another article about a "grassroots" liberal alternative to the Tea Party movement. If you have a feeling of "been there, done that," it is because Thompson's hype about the "One Nation" movement sounds almost identical to all the PR the mainstream media gave to the faded Coffee Party a few months ago. And the reason why Thompson dare not mention the Coffee Party is that it has devolved into a laughable parody of itself with aimless group therapy sessions dominated by founder Annabel Park as you can see in this video with a grand total of 915 YouTube views as of this writing.

Meanwhile stifle your yawns as Thompson plugs yet another supposedly grassroots organization while carefully avoiding mention of you-know-what:

In an effort to replicate the tea party's success, 170 liberal and civil rights groups are forming a coalition that they hope will match the movement's political energy and influence. They promise to "counter the tea party narrative" and help the progressive movement find its voice again after 18 months of floundering.

The large-scale attempt at liberal unity, dubbed "One Nation," will try to revive themes that energized the progressive grassroots two years ago. In a repurposing of Barack Obama's old campaign slogan, organizers are demanding "all the change" they voted for -- a poke at the White House. 

Didn't we already go down this path back in March, Krissah, with the COFFEE PARTY? There! I said it.

Despite the friction among liberal groups, the effort behind "One Nation" was born of a certain necessity: At one of the first meetings, Deepak Bhargava, executive director of the Center for Community Change, said, "Raise your hand if you can push your part of the agenda all by yourself." 

Raise your hand if you can spot "Coffee Party" in Thompson's story. What? No hands? 

And now stand by to laugh as you read Thompson recite the "grassroots" organizations behind "One Nation."

The groups involved represent the core of the first-time voters who backed President Obama -- including the National Council of La Raza, NAACP, AFL-CIO, SEIU and the United States Student Association. (The effort is separate from the Democratic Party's plan to spend $50 million trying to reach those same voters.)

Okay, bear with your humble correspondent as he sounds off on a pet peeve of his involving La Raza which means "The Race" in English. Imagine the reaction if a white group called itself "The Race." Yet somehow La Raza is okay with liberals. However, perhaps even Thompson realizes something is not quite right with that name so she refers to it by the initials, NCLR, for the rest of her article hyping a recycled Coffee Party by another name:

"This is a way to create some intensity," said Eric Rodriguez, vice president of NCLR. "Month after month, we spend time pointing to these employment figures, and we're still not breaking through on the disparities in a way that we think is important."

This week at their national conventions both NAACP and NCLR leaders will begin talking to their members about "One Nation," and they are seeking money from foundations for the effort. They hope it will be a show of force that will remind both Congress and the White House that they are out there.

Please ditch the innocuous sounding NCLR and called it what it is, Krissah. The Race. Got that? THE RACE!!! Yeah, it is embarrassing to read but that is the correct translation of the name into English. Live with it.

Meanwhile, drop me a line, Krissah, after "One Nation" falls into as much obscurity as the "Coffee Party" and you are back to plugging yet another leftwing "grassroots" Tea Party wannabee. How about we pick a name in advance? "Coffee Nation?"