Liberal coalition rallies on D.C. Mall

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 (UPI) -- Tens of thousands of people gathered at the Washington Mall in the U.S. capital Saturday to rally the liberal troops in advance of the midterm elections.

The 4-hour event organized by civil rights groups and labor unions was a counterweight, albeit a smaller one, to the recent rally of conservatives organized by TV commentator Glenn Beck.

Ed Schultz of MSNBC's "The Ed Show," who helped direct the One Nation Working Together event, bashed Tea Party activists and other conservatives for being duplicitous in their attempts to portray themselves as more patriotic than liberals, The Washington Post reported.

"They talk about the Constitution but they don't want to live by it," Schultz said. "They talk about the forefathers, but they practice discrimination. They want to change this country."

He then shouted out, "Are you America?" to which the crowd roared back, "Yes!"

One member of the crowd, James Keane of New York, told the Post "it's about time the Democrats marched."

"We've stood by and watched the Tea Party people go crazy every couple of months," Keane, who is looking for work, said. "It's time for Democrats to stand up and fight for what they believe in. [President] Obama has been a great leader but so many in the Democratic leadership have been playing the fence."

Another, Paul Wilber, said the Tea Party is pushing "a backward agenda."

"I thought Beck's rally was self-centered, regressive and just the total wrong direction for the country," Wilber said. "I hope [this rally] will bring all the voters who voted for Obama back to the polls. His message is still right for the times."

People began arriving early, including many who rode into downtown Washington aboard the Metro, which the Post said began running an hour early to accommodate rally participants.

"What unites our coalition is a common goal to pull America back together and put America back to work," NAACP President Benjamin Jealous said. "We are unified through a deep concern over a lack of civility in the political discourse."

The Post said the call for civility hasn't precluded sniping between the organizers and the Beck camp. The newspaper said Beck this week denounced Saturday's rally because it had been endorsed by the Communist Party and other groups "that have fought their entire life to destroy America."

The Post said the 400 organizations listed as supporting the rally ranged from immigration and gay rights groups to labor unions and conservative African-American churches.

"We are unified around our common vision of an America where we acknowledge our differences and work together to solve problems," Jealous said.