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The arrival of the venerable Canadian exotic rock trios highly anticipated new studio album, The Ocean At The End, marks the official end of the 10-year vacuum of fresh The Tea Party original material. The Black Sea, a stellar track from the 11-song-deep effort and the electrifying tandem of Jeff Martin (vocals, guitars, producer, songwriter); Stuart Chatwood (bass, keyboards) and Jeff Burrows (drums, percussion), completes the bands cycle of resurrection, some of the first new music weve heard from them since 2004s Seven Circles and the first project since the double-disc Live From Australia: The Reformation Tour 2012.

The three of us probably never thought wed be sitting here right now, admits Martin, whose booming baritone, emotionally candid and mystical songwriting and string-bending guitar prowess has served as the creative catalyst for eight platinum and gold studio albums, one EP, one greatest hits collection, a live disc and over 2 million in global album sales.

Its a testament to the strength of the music that weve created in the past and a testament to the friendship that exists between the three of us. We had to do a lot of soul-searching, but now the bond between the three of us is stronger.

Its what Jeff Burrows calls, simply, a rebirth.

This album is selfishly taking back what is collectively ours, says Burrows. For me, this record means taking back everything my family and my music with my brothers, and what we are going to give people around the world when they hear it.

Chatwood adds: For me, its the beginning of a new chapter in the bands career. This is a gateway record. Its an improvement on what weve done in the past and a catalyst to a new direction as we mature as songwriters.

Produced and engineered by Martin, mixed by Grammy-award-winning David Bottrill (Rush, Muse, Peter Gabriel, Tool) and recorded largely at Torontos Revolution Recording, The Ocean at the End contains some of the most streamlined music in The Tea Partys career.

Its a rock n roll record, declares Martin, one whose genesis began last year in Byron Bay, Australia and eventually migrated to the trios original home base of Windsor, Ontario. We started the writing process in Australia in Byron Bay, and songs like Brazil and the Cass Corridor, Submission and The Waters On Fire came out of that session, he continues. But where things got really exciting for us was when we jammed in Windsor: songs like The 11th Hour and The Line Of Control came out and it was really rock n roll. We were having fun and not over-thinking it anymore. The water had passed under the bridge, and were three friends now. What do you guys want to do? Rock! Okay, lets go!

We grew up right next to Detroit and the influence of that city infects our music more than any other extraneous influence, states Chatwood.

We dont really take ourselves so seriously anymore, says Martin. There are no insecurities. Were making music for ourselves and were having fun. Its the whole point of it all.

This easygoing attitude is a result of the new respect and appreciation of each other that The Tea Party principals felt while separated. The time apart gave us such a richer experience to bring to the table when it came to songwriting, because weve gone, done other projects and grown up as individuals, says Chatwood. The quality of this record speaks for itself.

Percussionist Burrows concurs. Individually, we came back with more confidence in ourselves, Burrows explains. Were more mature and self-reliant.

As much as theyre self-reliant on The Ocean At The End, a couple of guest stars also grace the album: For the percussively driven Brazil, Aline Morales knocks out some polyrhythms, while the title track relies on flute from one of rocks seminal figures, Jethro Tulls Ian Anderson.

Now that the album is complete, the interaction begins. Only this time, its different: three brothers reunited, finding new musical purpose and ultimately, enjoying the ride and each others company. Its all of us equally in it together, which is why The Ocean At The End stands quite possibly might be the strongest thing weve done. Say Martin. Now its time to go out and tour Australia, Canada, South American and Europe, and go to places we havent gone before. Weve laid all this kerosene in different parts of the world through our music now its time to go to those parts and light the match.

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The Tea Party | Official Website

Brighton Tea Party Contact: Rose Drouillard Phone: 810-923-9892 Website: http://brightonteaparty.ning.com/ Location: Brighton, MI

Grassroots in Michigan http://grassrootsmichigan.com/ Joan Fabiano, Founder E-Mail grassrootsinmi@gmail.com Twitter: MIgrassroots https://twitter.com/MIgrassroots #mitcot And MidWgrassrootshttps://twitter.com/MidWGrassroots #midwest Facebook: Search for "Grassroots in Michigan" Physical Location: Capitol City, Lansing State-wide: Newsletter

Sunrise Side Tea Party Meets 4th Thursday monthly at: AuSable Inn at 7:00 PM Serving Alcona and Iosco Counties Contact: David Glass Email: dsg56@hotmail.com Website: http://www.sunrisesideteaparty.org/ Facebook: Sunrise Side Tea Party Location: Oscoda, MI 48750

W4AR - Warriors for American Revolution Fighting Against Smart Meters and Agenda 21 Contact: John & Pauline Holeton Phone: 586-731-3314 Website: http://www.w4ar.com/ Email: w4arjohnholeton@att.net Location: Michigan statewide

If you are affiliated with one of these Michigan Tea Party Groups and you feel that any of the information is inaccurate or out of date (including info on locations), please contact us and we will correct any errors.

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Michigan Tea Party Groups - Locations

Manuel Vazquez, 20, of Raleigh, N.C., front, attends a May Day immigration reform rally by the White House in Washington, on May 1, 2010.(Photo: Jacquelyn Martin, AP)

With another devastating ruling by a federal appeals court, President Obama may berunning out of options in his quest to remake the nation's immigration system before he leaves office.

As congressional leaders made clear they were not interested in passing a sweeping immigration rewrite, the president vowed to use his executive authority to protect undocumented immigrants and modernize the legal immigration system. That strategy was dealt a major blow Monday when the5th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down his programto protect up to 4.3 million undocumented immigrants from deportation.

The Department of Justice announced Tuesday that it would appeal that decision to the Supreme Court.That means the best-case scenario for Obamais a favorable Supreme Court ruling in the summer of 2016, which would come in the final months of his presidency and would inject the issue squarely into that November's presidential election.

In the meantime, immigration advocates say there are a few opportunities to cement his legacy remain."There's still a lot of room for ending his administration on a very, very high note," said Marielena Hincapi, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center.

Critics of the president's immigration strategy feel he should take Monday's ruling as the clear indicator that he's gone far enough. Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, said Obama should now adopt the viewpoint that he is responsible for carrying out the immigration laws on the books and stop "playing legal games" to wrestle power away from Congress.

"It would be beneficial for the country at large if he would give up this divisive and partisan manipulation of immigration law and restore the center, restore respect for our laws, for our democracy and its citizens," Stein said.

Whatever Obama decides, his remaining options are limitedand far from the bold actions he's tried to take to protect many of the country's 11 million undocumented immigrants.

USA TODAY

Appeals court deals crippling blow to President Obama's immigration plan

David Leopold, an immigration attorney in Cleveland who used to head the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said the president can ensure that his immigration enforcement agencies are focusing their deportation efforts on the most dangerous undocumented immigrants in the country. The Obamaadministrationhas deported about 400,000 undocumented immigrants a year, but has tried to increase the percentage of those who fall under categories that include people with extensive criminal records, gang ties or who pose threats to national security.

Leopold said that message has not been adopted by all Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, or Department of Justice prosecutors, leading to the ongoing deportations of undocumented immigrants who have been leading largely peaceful lives in the U.S.

"That needs to stop, and that can stop," Leopold said.

Hincapi said the president could also work to end the practice of using detention centers to hold mothers and children who are fleeing gang violence in Central America. That practice became commonplace last year, when nearly 70,000 unaccompanied minors rushed acrossthe southwest border, leading to the use of "family detention" that Hincapi calls "one of the darkest blemishes in our history." Thousands of mothers and children remain in those detention centers around the country awaiting rulings on their requests for asylum or refugee status.

"The president has the opportunity scale that back and turn that around," she said.

Obama could also work unilaterally to make changes to the legal immigration system to allow more foreign workers to enter the country and stay here longer.

For example, the administration is considering a plan to allow foreign students who graduate from American universities with degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to stay in the country for a longer period of time after they graduate. The administration has also considered creating a "start-up visa" for foreign entrepreneurs trying to start tech businesses in the U.S.

Either of those changes would help those industries tremendously, said Todd Schulte, executive director of FWD.US, an advocacy campaign for the tech industry founded my Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and other Silicon Valley titans.

"It's important to realize that there are hundreds of thousands of high-skilled immigrants whose lives could be dramatically improved andbillions and billions of economic activity unleashed," through those kinds of openings, Schulte said. "We can't stress strongly enough how much this must be a priority."

As it stands, the president's immigration legacy remains mixed.

On the one hand, he's been called the "deporter-in-chief" for continuing to deport so many immigrants each year and breaking up families where some immigrants have legal standing in the country and others are undocumented. On the other, he created a program in 2012 that has protected nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children from deportation, and protected other groups, including the relatives of U.S. military members.

With few other options remaining for Obama, it will likely be up to the Supreme Court to decide that part of his legacy.

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Obama running out of immigration options

President of the United States

President Barack Obama's years of public service are based around his unwavering belief in the ability to unite people around a politics of purpose. Born in Hawaii, the son of a Kenyan father and a white Midwestern mother, Obama wrote about his difficult upbringing in his bestselling book Dreams Of My Father. He went on to attend Harvard Law School where he edited the prestigious Harvard Law Review. Working for a Chicago law firm he met his future wife Michelle Robinson. He later became an Illinois State Senator before being elected to the United States Senate. On the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have A Dream speech, Sen. Obama accepted the Democratic nomination for president. He was elected the 44th President of the United States on November 4, 2008, and sworn in on January 20, 2009, becoming the first African-American President in U.S. history.Now serving his second term, Obama has been working to reform gun laws and became the first President to openly support same sex marriage.He and Michelle have two daughters, Malia and Sasha.

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Barack Obama was sworn in as president on January 20th, 2009, in the middle of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, at a time when our economy was losing 800,000 jobs a month. He acted immediately to get our economy back on track. Since then, the private sector has added back more than 10 million jobs during the longest, uninterrupted period of job growth in our nations history.

In his first term, the President cut taxes for every American workerputting $3,600 back in the pockets of the typical family. He passed historic Wall Street reform to make sure taxpayers never again have to bail out big banks. He passed the landmark Affordable Care Act, helping to put quality and affordable health care within reach for millions of Americans. He ended the war in Iraq and is working to responsibly end the war in Afghanistan.

Hes the first sitting president to stand up for marriage equality, and is fighting for equal pay and a womans right to make her own health decisions. Hes made a college education more affordable for millions of students and their families. And he believes its time for a comprehensive solution to fix our broken immigration system.

The President believes an economy that's built to last starts by growing and strengthening the middle classthats why he has a plan to create jobs and restore economic security to working families. Hes been driven by the basic values that make our country great: America prospers when were all in it together, when hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded, and when everyonefrom Main Street to Wall Streetdoes their fair share and plays by the same rules.

The President's legacy as a grassroots organizer inspired millions. Organizing for Action is proud to be built from the ground up by people who believe that real, lasting change only happens when you organize.

Read more about the President, First Lady Michelle Obama, and the First Family at http://www.whitehouse.gov.

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About Barack Obama Barack Obama