Don't Tread on Me

I did not attend a Tea Party, but I watched the coverage (in all its forms) with interest. Here are two observations about the coverage:

1. Fox News covered these with interest. Promote is too strong a word to use, but its probably close to the right one.
2. CNN, NBC (in all its forms), CBS and ABC ignored these at best and generally ridiculed (see "tea bagging") what they did cover. I wonder what the coverage would have been like had the primary message been protesting a war.

Why did the media (and many elected Democrats) choose to ridicule these gatherings? It appears to me as though this was a legitimate grass roots movement (via email and blogs) of a significant portion of the populace that was mad as hell at their elected officials (Democrat and Republican) over spending.

I didn't hear our President address these Tea Parties directly. (Maybe he did.) I did hear him talk about how great his tax plan is and we should't worry and we'll have a kinder and gentler April 15 from here on out.

Here's what I think he should have done: He should have held a press conference and had a Bill Clinton moment. "I feel your pain." He should have acknowledged the outrage and asked for patience and trust. Now, maybe that would have only impressed me, but at least he would have been engaging We the People with respect. Is that too much to ask?

My question to you (don't everybody respond at once): Why are some folks ridiculing the Tea Parties rather than debating their message?