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Sarah Palin Speaks At Tea Party Convention

By Brent Frazier

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - On a bitterly cold night, Sarah Palin received a warm welcome in Music City. The former Vice Presidential candidate was in town to cheer on a grass roots effort at the National Tea Party Convention.

There is no question Sarah Palin is controversial, but as the man who introduced her told the crowd, "She irks the right people in the right way. She is accountable only to herself, and she is an independent spirit."

Basking in a true Tennessee welcome, Palin criticized the current administration on National Security, illustrating her point through the foiled Christmas Day attack.  

"The only thing that stopped this terrorist beyond luck and brave passengers, is that it was a Christmas miracle, and that is not the way that the system is supposed to work," said Palin.

She took hot shots at the president. However, some took shots at her, "I think she's a joke," said Carla Rosenbaum, one of the demonstrators outside Gaylord Opryland, who also took issue with the convention itself.

"The [conference attendants] were totally disrespectful, disruptive, and they screamed and yelled when anyone tried to ask a question," Rosenbaum explained.

There was no indication of quieting down. The grass-roots group is pushing for a return to Constitutionality.

State Representative, Tony Shipley is not a Tea Party member, but shares a lot of the group's views.

"Let's balance the budget. Let's defend this country, and let's do the things right. The way they were intended," said Shipley.

Calling the movement an "American Revolution," Sarah Palin is quickly becoming a face of the Tea Party, told the crowd Washington has broken a trust with the American people - and that taxes need to be lowered for small businesses.

The event was $349 per plate with lobster as the main course.

E-mail: bfrazier@newschannel5.com