I was returning home from taking my son to school Monday when I caught Rush Limbaugh's show as he gave his opinion on why so many people attended the rally in D.C. last Saturday. Rush said we came not because we are fed up with government but because we are fed up with Democrats and the Democrat president. As one of those protesters and one of the coordinators for the Dayton Tea Party in Ohio, I have to tell you, Rush, you couldn't be more wrong on this one – and no amount of analysis, reports or numbers from prior elections is going to change that.

I know why I am protesting and I am very clearly aware of what this movement is about, and anyone who has attended any one of the tea parties knows it, too. I attended four of them and spoke at three. The air in those rallies – and the over 30 smaller community meetings known as Liberty Groups that formed from them – is the same everywhere. We are sick of government corruption and its invasion in our lives.

I completely agree with Rush that this is a conservative movement, but he is equating Republican with conservative as if they are synonymous – and they are not. Rush insists the two parties are not the same, and while I agree that the platforms of the parties are dramatically different, the people serving in office are not. The Republican Party looks great on paper, but the people who call themselves Republicans (but for a few exceptions) either have no idea what the Party stands for or they just don't care.

The tea parties are not protesting a party; they are protesting an oppressive, out-of-control government, and both parties are guilty.

It wasn't the Democrats who pushed No Child Left Behind or the massive expansions to Medicare. It wasn't the Democrats who pushed through  the $700 billion TARP.  It wasn't a Democrat president who threw the Constitution out the window and expanded the powers of government well beyond the Constitution with the Patriot Act and Homeland Security.  It wasn't a Democrat president that tried to legalize millions of illegal aliens and basically called the American people stupid and uncaring for fighting against it.   This fight did not begin with President Obama, his taking office just escalated it.

The reason Barack Obama was elected was because of the two-party system. The people of America didn't know where else to go. How can you be heard when you are told you only have two choices and they both stink? In 2006, voters came out in mass numbers and voted Democrat down the ticket to "teach Republicans a lesson." Not only did that strategy not work, it totally backfired. In 2008, the people bought into the "Change" theme because that is what we all wanted – change in Washington. But the change we got was not what we were promised. We have taken the easy way out for too long. There is no accountability in Washington. There is no transparency. And the only way we are going to get it is to vote both parties out – but not by voting a third party in.

Like Rush Limbaugh, I am adamantly opposed to a third-party option. Voting "third party" simply for the sake of change will only exacerbate the problem. We've already tried the changing of the guard, and it doesn't work. The answer is not to vote third party; the answer is to vote NO party! We need to stop voting by letters the way preschoolers color by numbers. It's time we take all the letters away and stop taking the easy way out. We need to vote people not parties, and issues not politics. That is what these tea parties and protests are about – taking the government back into our own hands where it was always meant to be. But if we allow Rush Limbaugh to convince us we are protesting a party and this whole thing comes down to Republicans versus Democrats, the movement will come to a screeching halt and we will lose all the ground we have gained.

This movement knows no color, no race, no religion, no gender, no party! And we need to keep it that way. We are not protesting a Democrat president; we are protesting the policies of our current president. It doesn't matter what party he is. It only matters that he is going against the will of the people. We are not protesting the Democratic Party. We are protesting people who are completely disregarding the Constitution and introducing socialism into our republic.

This isn't about saving the Republican Party; it is about ending government corruption. And we will no longer allow anyone to divide us by race, gender, religion or party. We are not protesting a party; we are fighting for America. We are Americans, coming together to fight for our freedom and our republic. It is as simple as that.

We don't want any more politicians in Washington or anywhere else in this country. We want statesmen – men and women who understand the fundamental principles and guiding values this nation was founded on, men and women who have the courage to stand up for those principles no matter what the cost. We want leaders with integrity and moral character who are willing to sacrifice their lives, fortunes and sacred honor for the public good – men and women who are committed to fighting for a cause that is greater than themselves. That is what we want. And that is what we are fighting for.

Shame on us for not being here before. Shame on us for being asleep at the wheel and allowing this to happen. But we are here now. We are awake. We are engaged. And we are not going anywhere! Enough is enough. No matter what party you are, we are not going to take it anymore. And that, Rush, is what this movement is about.