Steve Chabot Meets Norman Rockwell

The other day I posted a piece about Rep. Steve Chabot's (R-OH) recent town hall meeting. During this town hall meeting, Chabot banned the use of cameras (though not media cameras) and even had a Cincinnati Police Officer confiscate equipment of those who tried to record the public meeting. This was all done for, as Chabot claimed, "security purposes" of those in attendance but as ThinkProgress pointed out, the real reason was so that people "didn't make a show" of the event.

The backlash from First Amendment advocates was intense and led to Chabot announcing that cameras would be permitted at his next event.

It is curious why some Conservatives claim to champion "personal freedom" while campaigning, but then deploy Orwellian tactics that are anything but open and honest when at a public event. Remember Ohio State Treasury Candidate Josh Mandel, whose staffer tried to block my camera during a public event in 2010? Or how about Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL) who recently distributed a "blacklist" of local activists who may criticize him at town hall meetings?

It appears that Rep. Chabot has fallen in with the crowd who are first to preach love for the Constitution and love for protesters (especially when speaking to them), but who take a much different stance when it is time to put those words into practice.

This leads me to a reader submitted graphic that might make an appropriate campaign sign for Chabot in the future. The artwork on this one is credited to Roger De Bris, "with apologies to Norman Rockwell":




This piece is cross posted here.

Steve Chabot Bans Cameras at Public Town Hall Meeting "For Security Purposes"

Thinking about taking a camera to record Rep. Steve Chabot's (R-OH) next public town hall meeting? Think again! According to this report from ThinkProgress, Chabot banned constituents from filming the town hall meeting:

Fearing pushback on issues like ending Medicare and corporate tax dodging, Chabot took an extraordinary step in order to prevent a possible “Youtube moment”: he banned constituents from filming the town hall. Outside the town hall were multiple signs reading, “For Security Purposes, Cameras Are NOT Permitted.” In fact, on at least two separate occasions, middle-aged constituents who tried to record the public event had their cameras confiscated and were asked to leave.

Oddly, media were permitted to film the event which undercuts the claim that cameras were banned "for security purposes". What is the real reason for Chabot's ban on public filming of the event? ThinkProgress has the answer:

...as one of Chabot’s staffers told ThinkProgress, they wanted to “prevent” people from “making a show” of the event. Indeed, Chabot and his staff were worried enough about citizens voicing their anger at his policies that they only accepted pre-screened questions chosen by the congressman’s staff.

Check out this video that was captured of Cincinnati Police confiscating cameras from citizens who were attempting to tape this public town hall meeting:

President Obama to Address the Nation on Health Care Tonight

President Obama will be addressing a joint session of Congress and the nation this evening on the topic of health care reform. The intended goal of Obama's address will be to clarify some of the details that he would like to see included in a final version of the health care legislation. Up until this point, Obama has let Congress do much of the legwork in negotiating various provisions that are present in the various bills that are under consideration.

There has been much discussion surrounding the "public option", or a government-run insurance program that would compete with the private insurance companies. While it appears that the House should be able to pass a health care bill with a strong public option, it is unclear whether the Senate will be able to muster 60 votes needed to pass a bill with a public option. Because of this, it now appears that Obama is going to express his support for a public option in his speech this evening, while not ruling out signing legislation that does not contain such a provision. From Politico:

In a speech meant to reset debate on the centerpiece of his first-term agenda, Obama can be expected to use language similar to his Labor Day remarks in Cincinnati, where he said: “I continue to believe that a public option within that basket of insurance choices will help improve quality and bring down costs."

Anxious to navigate treacherous divides in the Senate, the president will stop short of drawing a line in the sand, as many liberal House Democrats want. He will not demand that a public option must be in any reform bill he signs, the sources said.

In other words, the President is leaving open the possibility that he will compromise on the compromise. As I have stated previously, the original compromise is the public option. Ever since a single-payer system was declared "off the table", there are some progressives who accepted discussing the public option as a workable compromise to the exclusion of the preferred system. These progressives, like Jane Hamsher, have been instrumental in their activism and getting members of the House to commit themselves to voting for a bill only if it contains a robust public option.

Now, after a month of wild town hall meetings that were ripe with misinformation, we are seeing continuing signs that the White House is not married to the idea of a public option and would be willing to pass legislation even if the final bill does not contain such a provision. Just listen to how careful White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs is with his language this morning on NPR's Morning Edition:



Gibbs flat out states: "The public option is not the most essential part of health care reform...even though the public option, the President believes, is a valuable tool, as I said, to create choices and competition."

Look for this to be a microcosm of Obama's speech tonight. Obama will walk the fine line of expressing his personal preference of incorporating a public option, but will allow plenty of room for the health care legislation to continue to be weakened by members of Congress who wish to continue with the status quo. The President wants some kind of reform passed as it will be a big political win on which Democrats (and Obama himself) will be able to put on their resumes in the next elections. I just fear that we are seeing more evidence that Obama is more willing to adapt himself to existing institutions than to work to fundamentally change them. This is an area where we need fundamental change.

Cincinnati Health Care Forum Draws Big Crowd, Mixed Emotions

On Tuesday evening, the Hamilton County Democratic Forum held an what was dubbed an "educational program about Health Care" at the 20th Century Theater in the neighborhood of Oakley in Cincinnati, Ohio. The event featured Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-OH) and Jessica McNiece who represented Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and allowed the event to be open to the public so that questions could be asked and so that the issue of health care could be discussed.

As I have reported previously, the past two events which have featured Rep. Driehaus as a speaker, have drawn crowds which have been very vocal in either their support or their resistance to the current health care reforms that are being proposed by members of Congress. While this gathering was not quite the spectacle, many familiar faces were again present to make their voices heard. There were citizens representing the Cincinnati Tea Party organization, the Cincinnati 9/12 Project, Cincinnati Progressive Action, and Planned Parenthood in attendance and contrary to the first public meeting on health care reform, those who are in favor of both a single-payer system or a public option greatly outnumbered those who were advocating against reform.

Security was tight as I entered the 20th Century Theater about a half hour before the event was scheduled to start. I was met at the door by security officials and my bags were inspected before I was allowed to enter. Employees of the theater were also collecting signs and banners that activists had brought to the event and placed them outside so that they could be collected after the conclusion of the forum. As I set up my equipment there were members of the Hamilton County Democratic Forum that were passing out the rules of the evening which included:

- Everyone MUST be respectful of his or her fellow Americans
- No guns, knives or weapons of any kind are allowed in the theater.
- No shouting
- No noises, including, but not limited to: booing, whistling, hissing, etc.
- People who disobey the rules or are in any way discourteous to the speakers or their fellow Americans will be asked to leave, and if necessary, escorted from the building.

Also stated at the top of the handout was the declaration: "This is a private meeting and is not a Town Hall Meeting or a government sponsored event."

These rules, including the rule regarding people being escorted from the building, would come into play later in the evening.

As citizens took their seats in the theater, the atmosphere was relatively calm and the demeanor of the crowd was overall positive. I will refrain from describing much of the content once the forum began as I have posted complete video footage of the event below. The forum consisted of opening remarks from the Hamilton County Democratic Forum, followed by remarks from Rep. Driehaus and Jessica McNiece. Following the opening remarks, a panel of four was present on the stage and each member of the panel had a chance to ask two questions. Following the questions of the panel members, Rep. Driehaus and Ms. McNiece drew cards from a basket. These cards were handed out prior to the event to those who wished to ask a question. The cards were then collected, put in a basket, and chosen at random.

This process allowed for a wide variety of questions to be asked and for some interesting moments throughout the forum. Rep. Driehaus was asked about his own acceptance of campaign funds from the health care industry (which he did not deny and justified by implying that he has to take these contributions due to the way the campaign finance system is set up-Q&A Video 5 at 7:41-) as well as why he was discounting a single-payer health care system. This type of random questioning also allowed for those who oppose health care reform to get a chance to make some of their concerns known. Driehaus received questions regarding abortion, end of life care, and the deficit. Many of these questions elicited some animated exchanges between Driehaus and the crowd. One of these moments came at the 1:11 mark in the Q&A 6 video below.

The evening did not conclude without some fireworks. There was one instance where two gentlemen continually shouted out that Driehaus and other speakers were lying about various issues. I watched as security warned these men about shouting out during the meeting. As the shouts persisted, these two men were kicked out by security. There was another instance where a man jumped to his feet and began shouting as he walked toward the back of the theater, obviously expecting that he would be kicked out for his behavior. Even Jim, as you will recognize from this video which I shot at the first town hall meeting, was kicked out of the event after he shouted out a comment about tort reform (Q&A #8 Video at 1:50). In an interesting moment, Rep. Driehaus actually answered his question as he was being escorted out of the theater while shaking hands with supporters. Jim later appeared outside with a sign that read: "Government Communism are not the solution. They are the problem. Stop the lies, stop the tyranny." A gentleman in a Cincinnati Tea Party shirt congratulated Jim for getting kicked out of the event, labeling Jim his "hero". Shortly after, a woman from England was arguing with another woman who had lived overseas about the quality of government-run health care and Jim yelled the following at the woman who was advocating a single-payer system: "You brought us World War One and World War Two! We don't want your tyranny!"

After the meeting was over, there were several familiar faces that gathered outside the theater to hold up signs to support their cause. "Medicare for All" read one sign while another one read "Single-Payer is Best". Signs against reform were also present and ranged from the sign that Jim carried to "Obamacare = Rationing End of Life Counseling". One woman even stated that the only conversation that you should have at the end of life should be with God; apparently in reference to her opposition for the end of life counseling options that are present within the bills before Congress.

The mood outside the theater after the conclusion of the event was light-hearted with an opponent of reform (who almost got into a fight during the last gathering) yelling "Hi Mom and Dad" at my camera. Even Rep. Driehaus was able to exit through the front door of the theater without being shouted at as he made his way to his car. I encourage you to watch the videos below to see the responses to the questions that were asked especially as the debate over reform is heating up. Congress will be back in session very soon and as we begin to see the White House continue to use language that suggests that the public option may be struck from the bill, it is a good bet that the public will have much more to say about health care reform in the days to come.

Introduction


Steve Driehaus 1


Steve Driehaus 2


Jessica McNiece


Q & A 1


Q & A 2


Q & A 3


Q & A 4


Q & A 5


Q & A 6


Q & A 7


Q & A 8


Q & A 9



This piece is crossposted here.

Ralph Nader and Bill Moyers Weigh in on Health Care

As the debate over health care rages on, there are a couple of items that I wanted to point your attention to.

Consumer Advocate Ralph Nader has a new piece over at CommonDreams.org which discusses the efforts of six physicians from Oregon. They have embarked on a cross-country journey in a Winnebago to 30 cities to discuss health care, debate critics, and push for a single-payer health care system that would cover all Americans.

The tour is called the "Mad as Hell Doctors" and they plan on arriving in Washington D.C. on October 1st. They have requested a meeting with President Obama, but the White House has turned them down. From Nader's piece:

The White House turned them down flat, not even leaving the door open for reconsideration. Mr. Obama has met countless times with the CEOs of large corporations, whose greed and callousness causes so much of this crisis. Though he believes in single payer "if we started from scratch," he has yet to meet with any single payer delegation.

The White House has shown that it lacks smarts. The formless, waffling Obama health insurance proposal is being shattered by the Republican cluster of Limbaugh-driven lies and the Blue Dog renegades in the Democratic Party, who are busy cashing mounds of campaign checks from the so-called health business. By ignoring and excluding the majority-supported single payer approach, the White House stifles any kind of insurance reform worthy of the name.

[...]

As with war, truth is the first casualty when it comes to the health care debate. The Democratically-controlled Congress, on its return after Labor Day, needs a wide-ranging personal, evidence-based series of public House and Senate hearings to again publicize the compelling story of avoidable suffering, fraud, waste, egregious profiteering and top executive self-enrichment - all subsidized by taxpayers.

Journalist and television host of The Bill Moyers Journal, Bill Moyers, was on Bill Maher's program the other evening discussing health care and other various issues. The three videos of his 30-min. long interview are below and are well worth your time:







Locally, Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-OH) is having another public meeting on health care this evening at 7PM at the 20th Century Theater in Oakley. As I have reported, both of his previous meetings have brought out protesters against health care reform, supporters of reform, and protesters who are in support of a single-payer system. It is expected that tonight will bring out many of the same sentiments. I will be there to get reactions from outside the meeting.

I will take this opportunity to mention two items that are somewhat related. First, while I will be shooting video at tonight's event, my editing software has been giving me all kinds of fits. I have ordered new software which should alleviate the problem, but it is not yet in my possession. Hopefully I will be able to post some of the material that I will shoot later this evening, but as I have learned, no guarantees. Secondly, I will be travelling beginning on Thursday and will be back in town on Monday. Blogging will be little to non-existent over this time period, but please take the time to still visit and catch up on many of the videos that I have posted that you may not have had the time to watch.

More Footage From the Second Cincinnati Townhall

Earlier, I posted a summary of the second town hall event that Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-OH) held yesterday at the Nathanael Green Lodge Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. This was a ticketed event as it was part of the Green Township Democratic Club's normal scheduled meeting. The club decided to issue tickets to the event once it was realized that a lot of people would be showing up to discuss the issue of health care.

While citizens showed up representing both sides of the health care debate, it was clear that those in favor of health care reform outnumbered those who are against the reforms that are currently being discussed before Congress. This was a big difference from the first town hall meeting during which those opposed to reforms greatly outnumbered those in favor.

I have uploaded another video from the event that you can view below. You will see part of a speech given by the Secretary Treasurer of the local chapter of the AFL-CIO and how that quickly degenerated into heated arguments throughout the crowd. This video culminates with a man who is opposed to health care reform threatening to kill a man who is in favor of health care reform. I am working on one more video from this event and hope to have it posted soon.

I also encourage you to visit my other post on this event which contains the video of a woman who continually shouted "Obamacare is America's Chappaquiddick". There is another town hall meeting scheduled for this upcoming Tuesday at the 20th Century Theater in Oakley during which Rep. Steve Driehaus will be speaking. I will be sure to have more video from that event.

Barney Frank Asks Woman What Planet She is Living On

I am sure that many of you have seen this by now as I am a little late in posting this, but in case you haven't, here is the response that Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) gave at a town hall to a question about Obama's "Nazi policies":

Here is Another Shocker...

It turns out that Ernest Hancock, who I mentioned earlier today in this post, has quite the colorful background. From Talking Points Memo (emphasis mine):

Ernest Hancock, the online radio host who staged an interview with an assault rifle-wielding cohort at the Obama event in Arizona yesterday -- and was himself armed with a 9 millimeter pistol -- was a vocal supporter and friend of right-wing anti-government militia members who were convicted of conspiracy and weapons charges in the 90s.

The federal government initially accused the Arizona Viper Militia of plotting to blow up federal buildings, which the twelve-member group cased on videotape.

[...]

Hancock, who in recent years designed the famous "Ron Paul rEVOLution" graphic, was an oft-quoted defender of the militia members. The tapes of the government buildings, he said at the time, were purely "educational."

"They don't have criminal records," another press account quoted Hancock, who knew all twelve militia members, as saying. "They just like their guns. And in Arizona, gosh darn it, that's normal."

and this is the same guy who posted a picture of Obama as a Nazi brown-shirt on the website for which he is a producer, along with footage of Nazis marching in Germany under the heading "We know what we are up against".

Here is Hancock today on CNN talking about all of this:

Woman Yells "Heil Hitler" at a Jewish Man at a Health Care Town Hall

I came across this video clip (h/t Amanda Terkel) that was shot in Las Vegas during a town hall meeting that was sponsored by radio station KDWN AM720. In this clip you can see an Israeli man being interviewed by local media in Las Vegas about his health care system in Israel. This man is describing how fantastic his government-run care has been over the course of his life when you can hear a woman yell out "Heil Hitler!".

The man is shocked and then confronts the woman. Here is the video:



There are several things that don't make sense regarding what point this woman is trying to make. First, if she is opposed to health care reform and is upset that this man is defending his country's government-run health care system, then why yell out a phrase that is so offensive in support of the leader of the Nazi's?

Secondly, when challenged, this woman states "you ought to be the most against Obama, you ought to be the most scared." Why does she state this? Does she believe that Obama is Hitler and will therefore target Jews (like the gentleman speaking)? If this is the case then why would she have yelled "Heil Hitler" at this man to provoke him?

Third, the gentleman in this clip states that he isn't talking about being "for Obama" or "against Obama", but wants to talk about health care. He then states that he had to go to the emergency room (apparently locally in Nevada), had to wait two hours, and then was billed $8,000 because he didn't have insurance. The woman then responds by making crying noises in order to mock this man.

One can only conclude that this woman not willing to have a rational discussion about this issue, but is one of the many who are so ill-informed that it is painful to watch them interact with anyone who tries to have an actual conversation about health care reform. In the mind of this woman and many like her, Obama = Hitler, health care reform is evil, and anyone who thinks otherwise should be mocked and shouted down. How can anyone hope to have a rational conversation when this happens? It seems even more ridiculous if I were to take out the hyperbole and emotion of the conversation:

Man: Our government-run system in Israel is great!

Woman: Heil Hitler!

Man: Why are you yelling Heil Hitler at a Jew? I am Jewish and you think it is appropriate to yell "Heil Hitler"?

Woman: You should be the most against Obama and the most scared!

Man: I am not talking about being "for" or "against" Obama, I am talking about health care. I recently had to go to a local emergency room and I don't have insurance. On top of waiting for 2 hours, guess how much they charged me? $8,000!

Woman: Boo-hoo you baby!


Is this really the level of discourse that we have been reduced to?

Assault Rifle Brought to Obama's Town Hall in Arizona

Yesterday, President Obama made a stop in Phoenix, Arizona for another town hall meeting on health care reform. On this leg of his cross-country travels, as has been the case on his previous stops, protestors showed up to the event carrying firearms. From Bloomberg:

Armed protesters asserting their right to bear arms, including a man with a rifle slung over his shoulder, gathered yesterday near a Phoenix convention hall where President Barack Obama spoke, a police spokesman said.

The protesters were taking advantage of an Arizona law that allows people to carry unconcealed guns, Phoenix Police Department spokesman Andy Hill said. Police made no arrests.

[...]

The incident marks the third occasion in a week when guns have been linked to an Obama event. On Aug. 11, police arrested a man for having a loaded, unlicensed gun in his car near a New Hampshire school where Obama later held a health-care forum, USA Today reported. In a separate incident, another man outside that event displayed a gun in a holster on his leg, the paper said.

One of the men who was carrying an assault rifle to the event, has now been featured in a YouTube video (h/t TPM) from the group "Freedom's Phoenix" and "4409".

From Freedom's Phoenix website:

We recognize that Freedom was taken from us the moment the ink was drying on the Constitution. Today's governmental structure is imploding under its own weight, and its death rattles aren’t going to be pretty. At Freedom’s Phoenix we observe, comment and try to stay out of the way. We know Freedom will rise from the ashes, and we want to make sure that everyone's Freedom is never signed away again by those who believe they have the power to do so.

Ernest Hancock is the mind behind the "Freedom's Phoenix" website and on Sunday posted the following picture under the caption: "r3VOLutionaries go Head Up with "The Man" Monday Morning here in Phoenix" "We know what we are up against":



Below this picture and the words "We know what we are up against" is this video:



Here is the YouTube video that was posted highlighting the man who brought the assault rifle:

Harnessing Progressive Outrage

Author and Journalist Dave Lindorff has an interesting piece that is posted over at Counter Punch regarding the debate over health care reform. The main point of his piece is that the right-wing protesters are not really the main story:

What they are conveniently forgetting is that these are not really "town meetings" at all, at least in the sense of the town meetings I grew up with, and started out covering as a young journalist in Connecticut--that is, meetings called and run democratically, with leaders elected from the floor, open to all residents of a community.

These "town meetings" are really nothing but propaganda sessions run by members of Congress who are trying to burnish their fraudulent credentials as public servants, and trying to perpetrate a huge fraud of a health care bill that purports to be a progressive "reform" of the US health care system, but that actually further entrenches the control of that system by the insurance industry, and to a lesser extent, the hospital and drug industry.

[...]

Any mention of a system that works--single payer--the system we already have in the form of Medicare for the elderly and disabled, and the system that has proved successful for almost four decades in Canada-- has been systematically blocked and censored out of the discussion. Every effort has been made to bury an excellent bill, HR 676, offered up by Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), which would cover every American by simply expanding Medicare to cover everyone.

The only proper response at this point is obstruction, and the more militant and boisterous that obstruction, the better.

Instead of opposing the right-wing hecklers at these events, progressives should be making common cause with them. Instead of calling them fascists, we should be working to turn them, by showing them that the enemy is not the left; it is the corporations that own both Democrats and Republicans alike.

A couple of notes on this post that are worth mentioning. Lindorff is correct to observe that all the focus on the right-wing disruptions of the town hall meetings have lent a certain brand of sympathy from progressives to the Obama Administration and the currently proposed bills that are before Congress. With so much time needing to be spent correcting the ridiculous claims (euthanizing the elderly via "death panels", government control of which doctors that you can see, etc.) it takes away from the time that could be spent having a real conversation about options, like single-payer, that are not even being considered or discussed.

Lindorff also has a valid point that what is actually being advanced as a truly progressive reform of the health care system, is actually turning out to be a giant compromise between those who wish to reform the system and the lobbyists of the health care industry. Yesterday, The Huffington Post got their hands on a White House memo that outlines a compromise that was reached between the Obama Administration and the pharmaceutical lobby. Bloomberg is also reporting that there are six lobbyists for each member of Congress that are working to shape the terms on which health care will be reformed. These lobbyists have one thing on their side that constituents of members of Congress don't...large sums of money which too often translate into the power to influence critical decisions that we are told are in the public interest.

The issue I take with Lindorff, is his prescription for progressives to advance their calls for a single-payer system. His advice is two-fold; first, to disrupt these town hall meetings by being both "militant" and "boisterous". Second, to join the protesters on the right by finding common cause with them and trying to "turn" them by focusing their anger on corporate interests.

Lindorff's first point, that progressives should adopt the very tactics that they have been denouncing all this time, would simply be counterproductive. What good would being "militant" and "boisterous" be considering we have seen first-hand how ridiculous and anti-democratic this has been when displayed by the protesters on the right over the last few weeks? One of the very criticisms of the right has been that their tactics of disruption have resulted in the suppression of views from progressives who also may oppose the health care reforms. What good would be brought to the views of progressives if they also engaged in the shout-down tactics? I would argue that little to no good would be served by adopting these tactics.

Lindorff's second point is that progressives should be finding common cause with the right and should work to "turn them" by showing them that the common enemy are the corporate interests. While this may seem like moving a mountain, it could be a worthy long-term goal. This is not a good strategy for this current issue nor would much success come from even beginning to attempt to "turn" people who currently believe that moderate reforms to the system will result in the United States turning into Nazi Germany. Call me crazy, but I can't imagine the following scenario:

Conservative: "Down with Government control of health care decisions! We are turning into Nazi Germany! Obama is a socialist! You are going to kill my elderly parents!"

Progressive: "But what is being proposed isn't a government takeover of the health care system."

Conservative: "Really?"

Progressive: "Nope, but let me tell you why you should support a true government-run system and how the corporate interests are screwing us both."

Conservative: "Okay, I will listen calmly to your viewpoint, consider all the merits of each system, and then be open to changing my mind."

Please excuse my oversimplification in this example, but "turning" conservatives in order to unite with them to fight for a common cause is not a feasible strategy in my mind, especially in the short-term and especially when discussing health care reform given the current political climate.

Should progressives be angered and outraged at the insistence by Congress that the single-payer option be kept off the table? Most certainly.

Should tough questions be asked at these town hall meetings about this topic? Definitely.

Should progressives continue to fight for a health care system that would cover all Americans while not sacrificing the quality of care? Absolutely.

Should this be done by adopting the same disruptive tactics at town hall meetings and joining with Conservatives to attempt an approach as a "united front"? I don't think this is a good idea.

There are other ways with which to affect change and to use activism in order get Congress to take the option of "Medicare for all" seriously. Before all this outrage began, Jane Hamsher was (and still is) doing a commendable job at organizing and I think that progress can be achieved with both grassroots and coordinated efforts from progressive organizations. These voices are (unfortunately) being drowned out by all the screaming and all of the misinformation that is trying to be corrected. While it may seem like an easy step to sympathize with the Administration in lieu of all crazy rhetoric being spewed from the right, progressives should not sacrifice their own voices. We can do better in this debate over health care reform and in order to get health care widely recognized as a human right and in order to get every person covered, we must do better.

Stop Slandering us You Health Care Reforming Nazis!

If anyone wonders why local groups from around the country, including the Cincinnati Tea Party and Cincinnati 9/12 Project, continue to compare President Obama to Hitler and the current Administration to Nazis, then look no further:



Don't you like how Beck says that he isn't saying that eugenics is going to happen? I guess he changed his mind from back in May:

He's saying you can either let the delivery system do it, in other words, the healthcare system can just say, yeah, you're not going to get that. You're too old. You're a drain on society. I'm sorry, no kidney dialysis for people over 70. What is it in the UK?

60. Some the things they cut off once you outlived your usefulness.

This is Nazi Germany stuff.

This is the kind of stuff that is progressive in its nature. It is eugenics. It is survival of the fittist.

Regardless, the rest of his rant is filled with how similar these times are to the time during the rise of the Nazis. Rep. Tom Pence just wrote a piece that was posted over at Human Events in which he decried the criticism of those who oppose health care reform:

The notion that Americans may not want the federal government making health care decisions on their behalf appears to be truly beyond the comprehension of Democrats in Congress and the White House. So they have responded by slandering honest folks looking to have their voices heard.

The arrogance which the Democrats have displayed by name-calling and discrediting these people reveals their insolence and hypocrisy.

It appears that community organizing and grassroots are terms reserved solely for liberal activism. A number of taxpayer and patients rights groups post the location of town halls on the internet, and Democrats in charge act as though it is an abomination to democracy. Yet when then Senator Obama throws together an operation of a million liberal activists, so organic they created an iPhone app for it, that’s just good old fashioned political organizing. Right!

"Slandering honest folks"...who keep comparing Democrats to Nazis in order to argue against health care. Who is slandering who here?

For me, it is not an issue of opposing the "First Amendment Rights" of Conservatives to organize, voice their opposition, or even be part of grassroots or astroturf organizations to oppose the legislation. What I take issue with is the complete disregard for civil debate and the encouragement to purposefully "shout down" people at town hall meetings that feel differently than they do. What I take issue with, is perpetuating complete falsehoods that have been circulated about health care reform and then, based on these falsehoods, start to label people as "downright evil" and "Nazis" when they question the truth of said claims.

The criticism of opponents of health care reform doesn't have anything to do with suppressing the viewpoints of opponents of this legislation. The criticism of opponents of health care reform has everything to do with trying to maintain a healthy debate that is rooted in fact and refrains from labeling people as the equivalent of Hitler because they may support reforms to the health care system.

The Daily Show on the Health Care Debate

You knew that with all the madness that has been taking place in regard to the debate over health care reform as of late, The Daily Show was bound to provide some insight:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Healther Skelter
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Spinal Tap Performance

How Will All This Rage Come to a Head?

Rachel Maddow had an explosive and very relevant segment at the beginning of her show this evening regarding the health care debate. It updates some of the events that I didn't get to post about today (including comments from Sarah Palin) and for the first time openly injects the word "assassination" into the conversation about all the rage that we are seeing at these town hall meetings. You can feel the anger building and I think it is quite proper to have this discussion at this point:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Anti-Health Care Reform Activist Encourages Violence Against SEIU Members

As if the health care forums haven't already spun out of control, there is a new development. A caller called into the SEIU union headquarters and left the following message in response to the union encouraging members to show up to these forums to counter the tea-party conservatives:



What could top that? How about anti-health care reform activist Scott Oskay tweeting the following messages (h/t TPM):

If ACORN/SEIU attends these townhalls for disruption, stop being peaceful, and hurt them. Badly #iamthemob

If ACORN/SEIU attends these meetings for disruptive purposes, and you have a license to carry....carry.

Things continue to get serious. Here is another video from an event in Connecticut:

The Water Continues to Boil

There was a town hall meeting on health care reform in Tampa, Florida last night with Rep. Kathy Castor (D) as the featured speaker. More than 1,000 people showed up for this forum and like we have seen in other parts of the country (including here in Cincinnati) things quickly got out of hand. The venue could not hold all of the people that showed up and when some were denied entry into the building, they began banging on the windows and chanting. Here is a report from the FOX affiliate in Tampa:



If you are like me, you are probably thinking, how on Earth can anything get accomplished in a setting as crazy as that? Well, it appears that nothing did get accomplished in Tampa last night (emphasis mine):

Moments later, violence broke out just outside the main auditorium doors, prompting police to close off the meeting room. A freelance photojournalist was among those roughed up suffering damage to both his glasses and camera equipment.

"That's the most violent anyone has been towards me," said Mark Bishop, who drove from Orlando to video tape the event. "It was surprising to say the least."

At least one person was treated for minor injuries following the altercation and could be seen on video with a shirt partially torn off his body.

Outside, both those for and against President Obama's health care reform ideas chanted and yelled, at times banging on the outside of the auditorium windows. Some argued face to face in the parking lot, shouting and screaming at each other as police officers looked on.

"We walk a fine line between freedom of speech and public safety," said one of the commanding Tampa Police officers on scene who indicated no arrests were made.

Not long into the meeting, Rep. Castor was escorted out of the building after being encouraged by an event organizer to leave. It appeared the congresswoman gave up on trying to get her points across after the crowd inside grew unruly.

While there have been threats of violence and while members of Congress have received death threats over this issue (more on this in a moment), this appears to be the first instance where we actually have reports of violence breaking out at one of these town hall meetings. Here is another amateur video from last night:



There are two points that I would like to make. The first is that what happened last night in Tampa, is a goal of this movement. The town hall meeting had to be shut down and that is a win for the Republicans and Conservatives who oppose health care reform. Instead of offering solutions or constructive ideas to revise the health care system, they simply have taken the position that it will lead to "socialism" and all conversation about it should be shut down.

The second point is that this type of anger is not rooted in, nor is it specifically about, health care reform. This is the same kind of rage that we saw during the campaign for President when the right-wing supporters of John McCain claimed that Obama was a terrorist, that his friends were terrorists, and that he was going to destroy America. This is the same kind of rage that we saw once Obama took office and tea parties were organized in opposition to the stimulus. This is the same kind of rage that we see from time to time when the issue of race is brought up either in the Henry Gates case, the nomination of a Latina to the Supreme Court, or the legitimacy of Obama's birth certificate. They claim that Obama is a racist, a foreign-born operative, and imply that he isn't really "one of us". This rage has now morphed into the opposition to health care reform, but it still has the same ugly undercurrent that is all too recognizable.

Here is another interesting wrinkle in all of this (from the St. Petersburg Times):

Instead, hundreds of vocal critics turned out, many of them saying they had been spurred on through the Tampa 912 activist group promoted by conservative radio and television personality Glenn Beck. Others had received e-mails from the Hillsborough Republican Party that urged people to speak out against the plan and offered talking points.

This behavior is being encouraged (and in some cases organized) by some Republican and Conservative groups for political gain. This is actually being viewed as a political strategy that benefits the health care industry (which donates money to many politicians) as well as allowing these politicians to cloak themselves in this astroterf populism as they prepare to run for office in the next election. This rage is also being encouraged by people like Glenn Beck (who thinks Obama is a racist) and Rush Limbaugh which not only has the profitable result of gaining them ratings, but of whipping up the rage of fringe elements of the movement that may feel it necessary to stop (in their view) the "destruction of America" at all costs.

To be frank, I worry about where this rage is heading. I fear that the encouragement of these actions will allow for their continued embrace as a legitimate means to an end. When things begin to escalate from words, to symbolic hangings (in the video below), to fights...one only has to wonder where this stops and what goals are to be achieved by such practices.

Rachel Maddow spoke about this on her show last night and I it relates to this discussion and is on point:

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