“Give Me Liberty, Not Debt!”

Texans joined people across the country for Tea Party demonstrations against taxes and government overspending.

Hundreds of people attended a demonstration in Arlington at River Legacy Park off Green Oaks Boulevard and Cooper Street. Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Rep. Joe Barton spoke before the crowd.

"This is not an organized, top-down group of people," Barton said. "This is kind of everyday America standing up and saying, 'Today's Tax Day. We're mad about what's happening in America, and we want our congressmen and senators to do something about it."

In a fiery speech, Perry also revved up several thousand people Wednesday night at Fort Worth's LaGrave Field.

"Washington needs to listen with a very simple message: Cut spending, cut taxes, shrink government," he said.

He also quoted former Texas Gov. Sam Houston.

"Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression," Perry said. "Come from what source it may."

Earlier Wednesday, Perry told an Austin Tea Party that officials in Washington have abandoned the country's founding principals. He said the federal government is strangling Americans with taxation and spending.

The Tax Day Tea Party movement is a grassroots movement of citizens concerned about the direction the country is taking in regard to taxation, spending and government bailouts.  On Tax Day, there were thousands of Tea Party demonstrations scheduled across the country -- with many also occurring in North Texas.

Hundreds attended tea parties in Southlake and Hurst on Wednesday afternoon. Other demonstrations were planned in Dallas, Fort Worth, Midlothian and Burleson.

During Perry's speech to hundreds in Austin, there were several shouts of "Secede!" In other Tea Party demonstrations, participants could be seen holding banners that said, "Give me liberty, not debt," and "America is not broken -- fix Congress."

While answering news reporters' questions in Austin, Perry suggested Texans might at some point get so fed up they would want to secede from the union. However, Perry said he sees no reason why Texas should make such a move.