Obama Team Cracking Down on Townhall Meetings

Posted by Bobby Eberle August 7, 2009 at 7:34 am  >> Printer-Friendly Version

http://www.gopusa.com/theloft/wp-print.php?p=1800

The efforts of Barack Obama and his advisers to intimidate and discredit Americans with opposing views continue to unfold. We have learned of Obama's web site which calls for Americans to "rat out" their neighbors and anyone else who is spreading "fishy" information about Obama's health care plan. We also learned how the Democrats are labeling protestors as part of an angry "mob."

But there is more. During this August congressional recess, the Democrats will be making a full court press to rally support for Obama's sagging health care plans, and they will take no prisoners in the process. Disagree with Obama on health care? If so, then your "phony" concerns might just get you on the White House "enemies" list. You may also face increased pressure at townhall meetings.

Obama and the Democrats have faced a wave of angry Americans, and clearly they were not prepared for the opposition. Apparently, they think everyone is just in love with them and their policies to transform America into a socialist state. Democrat legislators have clearly not been ready for their own townhall meetings where constituents voiced their anger and concern with the big spending, big government actions of Obama and Congress.

How has Obama and his team responded? Simple. First, they are trying to discredit the opposition. According to them, "good" Americans favor the health care takeover, while "bad" Americans do not. Second, there is intimidation. As I reported yesterday, the White House is actually building a database of those opposed to Obama's plans, and they are encouraging Americans to report on other Americans. That is scary!

The strategy is now being stepped up. In a report in The Hill, "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called the protests 'phony' at a press conference he held earlier in the day, holding up a swatch of Astroturf to reporters to illustrate his point." In addition, "Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said the groups connected to the health insurance industry have organized the protests in an effort to protect corporate profits from new government regulations."

However, this strategy of discrediting the opposition that is favored by Obama and his team is very risky, and not all Democrats are buying into it. A few Democrat senators were quoted in the story as saying that at their townhall meetings they met strong people with strong opinions.

Still, Obama and congressional leaders are now doing EXACTLY what they are accusing the Republicans of doing: stacking townhall meetings with left-wing supporters. As noted in The Atlantic: "The Service Employees International Union says it's working to turn out its members at town-halls in states where it has a presence, coordinating with members of Congress to orchestrate turnout. (I mentioned earlier that the AFL-CIO will be doing that with a new, targeted campaign.) SEIU was working on town-hall turnout already, along with the rallies and phone banks it has planned across the country for recess, but conservative protests have led to a greater focus on ramping up town-hall presence specifically, in addition to the rest of the program."

In a post on CNN, the author notes that "liberal groups are sending supporters detailed instructions on strategies to counter what they call organized disruptions of congressional town halls -- events that have become new front lines in the fight over President Obama's health care proposal."

So, Obama and the Democrats accuse concerned citizens of being part of some right-wing effort to create an "angry mob," yet they are doing the same thing. The report continues:

OFA (Organizing for America) sent its e-mail list a message Thursday that pointed to the protests as a fresh hurdle that called for a concerted push to contact members of Congress in response. "The goal of these disruptions is for a few people to get a lot a media attention and hijack the entire public discourse," wrote executive director Mitch Stewart. The message identifies the lawmaker who represents the specific congressional district of the e-mail recipient, and provides contact information.

A new campaign by the group also asks supporters to make their presence felt at town hall meetings. "Our congressional representatives are back home this month, and they're facing more and more pressure from special interests on health insurance reform. It's critical that we get out there and show them where we stand," says an OFA e-mail.

HCAN - the massive umbrella organization that represents the lobbying effort on behalf of major progressive groups and unions like MoveOn, the NAACP, and the SEIU - has given its supporters instructions on their own set of defensive town hall tactics.

The group advises them to coordinate event-day strategy in advance with congressional aides; arrive far earlier than opponents and gather "in the front to create a wall around the Member"; and to assign individuals to shadow reporters and "be assertive in shaping the narrative." It provides suggested questions and possible chants to use in drowning out raucous opponents.

In the following video from a townhall meeting in St. Louis, members of SEIU are being allowed into the meeting, while others are not.

As Rep. Mike Pence notes, more people are showing up at townhall meetings because they know what Obama has in store for them.

  The key for conservatives is to continue to show up at townhall meetings and make our opinions known. We must also do so in a way that shows that our opposition is sincere and well constructed. Bring video cameras and document efforts by groups which try to shut the door on conservatives.

More people are opposed to Obama's health care plan than support it. We must keep up the pressure! If Obama and the Democrats have to organize the unions and groups like ACORN in order to stifle the voices of concerned Americans, then so be it. There are more of us, and now we are speaking out.

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