Congress Critters Afraid Of Their Screaming Constituents
I wonder what could have caused this? (h/t Dr. Melissa Clouthier)
Screaming constituents, protesters dragged out by the cops, congressmen fearful for their safety — welcome to the new town-hall-style meeting, the once-staid forum that is rapidly turning into a house of horrors for members of Congress.
On the eve of the August recess, members are reporting meetings that have gone terribly awry, marked by angry, sign-carrying mobs and disruptive behavior. In at least one case, a congressman has stopped holding town hall events because the situation has spiraled so far out of control.
Aw. The poor babies. Imagine them being so out of touch with their constituents that their constituents are livid and expect their elected officials to be responsible to their constituents.
“I had felt they would be pointless,” Rep. Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.) told POLITICO, referring to his recent decision to temporarily suspend the events in his Long Island district. “There is no point in meeting with my constituents and [to] listen to them and have them listen to you if what is basically an unruly mob prevents you from having an intelligent conversation.”
The problem is, the conversation has tended to be one way, and I am not just speaking about Democrats.
Democrats, acknowledging the increasing unruliness of the town-hall-style events, say the hot-button issues they are taking on have a lot to do with it.
“I think it’s just the fact that we are dealing with some of the most important public policy issues in a generation,” said Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa), who was confronted by a protester angry about his position on health care reform at a town hall event several weeks ago.
No, it’s not that you are dealing with them, it is HOW you are dealing, or, in some cases, not dealing, with them. Hence, the really pissed off constituents, who expect value for and responsibility with the money taken at the barrel of a jail cell.
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Posted by William Teach on July 31, 2009 6:12 pm
» Filed Under 1st Amendment, Congress, Democrats, Government corruption, Government malfeasance/misfeasance, Healthcare, News, Representative Government, Republicans, Taxes
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5 Responses to “Congress Critters Afraid Of Their Screaming Constituents”
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Syndicate Me
I don’t know about the other states, but I live in Maryland and my Congress members don’t listen. Most of them have been in office since time began. I write letters and they send me canned answers that basically say “I feel your pain. Let me dance around your question and tell you why you are wrong and that I will vote for this Bill.” I’m 67 and tired of fighting these self important clowns.
Come election day, I will vote against all three of my Congress members.
I find it odd that “unruly mobs” are preventing intelligent conversation. What could these “unruly mobs” possibly be upset about ? What’s not to love ? Maybe, just maybe the $50 trillion federal debt and nearly failing treasury auctions ? Possibly the 10-15% unemployment rate ? Or America’s new third world status around the world maybe ? Or the tax cheats, open borders, monumental corruption, and loss of all responsible values ? I just can’t understand why “unruly mobs” would be preventing intelligent conversation with members of Congress who enjoy a 20% approval rating…
Damn “unruly” Americans upset about a Democratic Congress which took over power in early 2007 and a recession which (funny how that happens) began 6 months later…
Funny how the body which writes the laws, writes the budgets, and creates policy came into power and 6 months later a really bad recession started. Funny…
First we vote them all out of office. Second, we demand term limits. Third, we take away their guaranteed pensions and give them an IRA, the retirement vehicle that most Americans have – if any. They can fund the IRA with up to 10% of their salary, and the taxpayers will match the contribution. The IRA investments will be U.S. Dollar Money Markets, U.S. Bonds and a mutual funds of the stocks that we have bailed out, i.e., GM, Chrysler, Citi, etal. This should align their interest with those of Americans, strong dollar and strong business.
Perhaps, contrary to assurances from their handlers (puppet masters), we the American people are not acting “stupidly”. We are reading. We are paying attention. We are thinking. We understand their deceptions.
We are revolting to prevent the reincarnation of King George and his ‘Tea Tax’.
I believe the author of this post earlier linked to my NCLR page from Newsbusters. With that intro, it’s difficult for me to explain exactly how dumb the idea of shouting people down and making a scene is. It’s like a solution baboons would come up with.
The smart way to do things is to join into groups and find one smart person who’s experienced with asking questions. Then, have that person ask questions designed to make the representative look bad, engaging in intellectual debate that can be uploaded to Youtube.
Those who aren’t childish baboons are invited to promote the plan at my name’s link.