More than 1,000 people from as far away as Ohio and West Virginia gathered this morning at Flagstaff Hill in Schenley Park for an Independence Day Tea Party, a protest organized against higher taxes, "big government" spending, universal healthcare and a variety of other issues.

The event's speakers denounced President Barack Obama's plan for universal healthcare as "socialism," global warming as a hoax and equated tax hikes with taking away their freedom. The crowd responded with cheers and chants of "Vote them out!"

Grover G. Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, was the event's headliner.

"(Democrats in Congress) don't like America as it is," he said. "And they want to use the power of the state to change us."