While
Fox News has celebrated the Taxpayer Tea Party rallies and MSNBC has
denigrated them, the impetus of the movement – CNBC and specifically
Rick Santelli, its inspiration – had been conspicuously quiet about it.
But
on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” April 15, co-host Joe Kernen asked Santelli what
he thought of being a “cultural phenomenon.” That was the same show
Santelli famously called out President Barack Obama for the unfairness of his housing bailout proposal on Feb. 19.
“A
lot of articles about these tea parties,” Kernen said. “They all have
your name in them, like you caused it. Are you actually attending any
or are you just sort of got the idea going initially? What do you
think? I mean, you’re like a cultural phenomenon at this point.”