There’s been an enormous amount of methane produced by the Democrats in Congress about the demonstrations that are happening at town halls across this great country of ours. The gist of the complaints is that this is not a genuine, grassroots uprising. The “Brooks Brothers Brigade” of “well-dressed” “un-American” “mobs” are being organized.
Cue scary music here.
This is nonsense on stilts, as Jonah Goldberg would say. The stilts are so high in this case, the nonsense is scraping the stars. First off, because people are being organized doesn’t mean for one single second that the emotions and outrage these people are feeling isn’t 100% genuine. Nobody is forcing these people to go. They are going voluntarily because they are angry enough to leave their homes, take time off from work, and make their presence felt. There are an enormous amount of people out there who are justifiably upset that the Federal Government feels that it is within their powers to take over 1/7 of the United States economy. They are upset with the idea of government-run healthcare, they are upset because this plan is being shoved down the throats of the citizenry, they are upset about the projected deficits, they are upset about the projected tax increases, they are upset with an unspeakably arrogant President who wants his critics to shut up and get out of his way…they are really, really pissed off about all of this. I am really pissed off about all of this.
The Democrats claim that the anger is based on distortions and lies coming from the insurance companies. Holy cow. Far from ginning up opposition to the plan, the insurance and pharma companies are at present grabbing their ankles and begging Congress to at least use a lubricant. The insurance companies, so vocal against Hillarycare in 1994 are strangely silent now. I’ve seen NO ads against Obamacare that have been paid for by insurance companies or Big Pharma. The reason is that Obama threatened them by promising he would not "offer them a seat at the table" if they ran ads oppoed to the plan. The insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies have rolled over for Obama. None of them are publicly speaking out for fear of getting "left out" of the Central Planning. Convinced that a massive reform is coming, they are trying to get on the good side by aligning themselves with the Administration and the Democrats in Congress. The line "you knew I was a snake when you picked me up" comes to mind.
And yet as far as the Democrats and their flunkies in the mainstream media are concerned, none of this upset is justified because the people who are upset took buses to get their well-dressed behinds to the town hall. This is beyond disgraceful. It’s positively Maoist. This may well be the low point of the Democratic party: insulting and belittling ordinary citizens and voters for daring to speak their minds. The punks have taken over the Democratic party.
Now, I wish the town hall protests were a little more civil. I’m not an advocate of yelling or of shouting people down. But I am also not an advocate of allowing the Democrats to get away with the BS answers they’ve been giving. When the politician starts spouting talking points and not answering questions, then I think the protesters need to call them on this. See this great video for an example of letting The Man speak with an idiocy so fluent you might think that English is his second language, but also letting him know that he’s not fooling anyone.
So since the outrage is justified and real, the only complaint the Democrats can offer is that it is organized. It’s probably true that groups like Conservatives for Patients’ Rights and Freedom Works are organizing some of the protesters. So what?
It’s been known for years that Leftist groups like MoveOn, ACORN, ANSWER, CISPES, La Raza, blah blah blah have been organizing protests for decades. Go to any Left wing protest movement and you’ll see a cornucopia of causes being espoused, all of them ostensibly falling under the umbrella of being anti-war, or pro-immigration, or whatever the cause du jour happens to be. The unions are famed for getting bodies out to protests (probably bodies that are making time and a half for their trouble). Again, so what?
It is the American way to be ticked off at your government sometimes. It is also the American way to gather others who are equally angry, head down to your local town hall or government building, and petition the government for a redress of grievances. The Democrat double standard of "dissent" being good when the President is George W. Bush and being bad when the President is Barack Obama is shameful, but not surprising.
This was in my email this morning, fowarded to me by a friend. I hope he didn’t send it to anyone else, lest he be accused of trying to organize a community. Note the line about members of Congress being physically assaulted. I’m inclined to think that it’s simply just another bald-faced lie. According to an article in Roll Call, the president of the Democratic freshman class claimed he spoke to "at least one" Congressman who was physically assaulted. Frankly, I don’t believe him but if I’m wrong and he can present this phantom, unnamed Congressman I will stand corrected and forcefully condemn any violence done. You know, like the violence done by union-organized thugs against town hall protestors. But now, simply immerse yourself in the swamp gas of hypocrisy:
All throughout August, our members of Congress are back in town. Insurance companies and partisan attack groups are stirring up fear with false rumors about the President’s plan, and it’s extremely important that folks like you speak up now.
So we’ve cooked up an easy, powerful way for you to make a big impression: Office Visits for Health Reform.
All this week, OFA members like you will be stopping by local congressional offices to show our support for insurance reform. You can have a quick conversation with the local staff, tell your personal story, or even just drop off a customized flyer and say that reform matters to you.
We’ll provide everything you need: the address, phone number, and open hours for the office, information about how the health care crisis affects your state for you to drop off (with the option of adding your personal story), and a step-by-step guide for your visit.
According to our records, you live near Sen. Chuck Schumer’s office in , NY.
Sign up now to visit Sen. Chuck Schumer’s office in this week.
(Not your representative, or think there might be another office that’s easier for you to get to? Click here to find a different office.)
As you’ve probably seen in the news, special interest attack groups are stirring up partisan mobs with lies about health reform, and it’s getting ugly. Across the country, members of Congress who support reform are being shouted down, physically assaulted, hung in effigy, and receiving death threats. We can’t let extremists hijack this debate, or confuse Congress about where the people stand.
Office Visits for Health Reform are our chance to show that the vast majority of American voters know that the cost of inaction is too high to bear, and strongly support passing health reform in 2009.
Don’t worry if you’ve never done anything like this before. The congressional staff is there to listen, and your opinion as a constituent matters a lot. And if you bring a friend, you’ll have more fun and make an even greater impact.
Click below to sign up for an Office Visit for Health Reform:
http://my.barackobama.com/OfficeVisit
Wherever you live, these visits matter: Many representatives are pushing hard toward reform, and they are taking a lot of heat from special interests. They deserve our thanks and need our support to continue the fight. But those who are still putting insurance companies and partisan point-scoring ahead of their constituents must know that voters are watching — and that we expect better.
Earlier this week, the President wrote that "this is the moment our movement was built for" and asked us all to commit to join at least one event this month. This is the way to answer that call, and rise to the challenge of this moment together.
Thank you for going the extra mile when it matters the most,
Mitch
Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America
Amazing, isn’t it? Dig the name of the organization. "Organizing for America." Wow. I can’t wait for Barbara Boxer to stamp her little feet and petulantly complain about this. It’s going to be a long wait, I know. Apparently, "community organizing" is only good for the goose.
Further reading: Michelle Malkin analyzes Pants-On-Fire Pelosi’s contribution, has video of Rep. Niki Tsongas trying desperately to explain why the plan is good for you, but Congress should be exempt, and also points out this hilarious page from Dana Loesch. Gateway Pundit has video of Rep. Russ Carnahan dodging and weaving with all the moral equivalence he can muster around the reality of union punks beating up people. Hot Air has video of a Democratic congressman berating a doctor who had the temerity to ask a question.
The Clampdown 
I would state that we have long passed the “civility” stage when dealing with our congressmen. The town hall meetings are NOT for a “dialogue” because to a left wing liberal or Demorcrate “dialogue” means “diatribe” where they preach and teach the unclean masses what is best for them. I don’t care how these congresspersons get the message but the first “message” they ought to get is that we, your constituents know that you don’t give a sh.t about most of us, we’re not as dumb as you have come to believe, you are in it for yourself and your political party so that you remain in power, and we know that you have become an isolated, insulated, beltway “thinker” that has nothing or very little in common with real folks who love this country, our constitution and what we believe. I don’t accept the “premise” of “dialogue” at these meetings. You sit there and listen to your consituents and answer their questions… other than that shut up and represent the people that voted you in to office and pay your salary and all you expenses.
I apologize for several misspellings in previous post (computer problem since fixed). I look at these meetings as something akin to a town holding a meeting where citizens have complained about a certain pedophile coach molesting their children and the officials look at you with disbelief and tell you that they have worked out a plan where your kid will get equal playing time. That’s why I believe that all of them must be hit hard and often that we don’t want any more government intervention in our lives that have anything to do with our personal decisions. We don’t want to live in a “nanny” state or country and we must re-iterate that they work for us and are beholden only to the taxpayers (notice I didn’t say those who voted for them.) Their “accomplishments” as congressmen either “broke our bones” or “picked our pockets” as one of our founding fathers stated and anything they claim as “their” accomplishment was used with OUR money, not theirs.