My Congressman, Rep. Tim Bishop, is holding a townhall this Thursday. I'm both very glad, and very anxious about this, because I really want it to go well. I've been hoping for one ever since I started hearing about the unruly ruckus manufactured by frightened and uninformed reform opponents, aided and abetted by hired industry "activists."
It took me a couple of weeks, though, to realize that Rep. Bishop was one of the first to face the townhall teabaggers, in June. He appears in Jon Stewart's "Healther Skelter" story about the mob mentality of the anti-reform Screamers, just below the fold.
At one point (around minute 1:00), he mentions and defends the VA program.
Audience Member (shouting): There's nothing to be proud of.
Rep. Bishop (quietly): I'm sorry, but I am proud of the VA health care system.
I thought that Bishop answered the comment with integrity and spirit. I wish I'd been there to cheer, but I'm embarrassed to say that I missed it. He was one of the first representatives to hold a meeting, and I failed him. But I thought he did very well in a tough crowd.
When I googled for information about it, I discovered that teabaggers had posted it far & wide as a recruiting tool. (I'm not posting it here, but you can easily find it: it's notable for charming, neighbourly and generous statements like "We want our country back" and "I don't want to be taxed to pay for other people's health care.")
The screaming tactic has obviously backfired: they look like a bunch of selfish, angry, uninformed idiots. Given the pushback and mockery that followed, though, I suspect they'll tone it down a bit. But I do expect them to be there.
Back in June, I thought I was just too busy to go to Bishop's townhall, even though I knew about it. I guess I was also overconfident--it seemed so obvious the public and the economy would benefit from serious health reform, and didn't really see the need to attend.
I'm not making that mistake again. I plan to attend Thursday's townhall.
I hope to find many of my progressive friends there!
Oh, and this morning, I got an email from Rep. Bishop, and was glad to see him reaffirm his strong commitment to a public option.
Here's the full text of his letter:
August 21, 2009
Dear Friend,
I need your help to fight for Long Island's values--
Show your support and contribute today.
I have spent the month of August focused on health care. I have
studied the text of the bills currently before Congress, met in
one-on-one and group settings with hundreds of constituents and spent
an hour or two each day calling back people who have contacted me to
express their views and concerns about health care reform. I want to
make sure I am best representing the voices of our community.
Considering there are a few more steps in the legislative process
before a final bill is produced, I cannot tell you at this time how I
will ultimately vote.
Hovever, I can tell you right now that one element of reform I
strongly favor is a public option. I believe the public option is a
vital check on the power of insurance companies and will help bring
down the rapidly escalating increases in health care costs. I
encourage you to read the editorial from today's USA Today
which knocks down many of the myths and corrects misperceptions about
the public option. (Link to the full article is below)
While I have been working hard doing my job to represent New York's
1st Congressional District, the National Republican Party's "hand
picked" candidate has declared he is running against me. (To read the full article in Newsday follow the link at the bottom of the page).
This candidate made his money by outsourcing thousands of American
jobs to India and just recently moved from New Jersey so he could
register to vote in Suffolk County -- in March of 2008. True to form,
he was recruited to run against me because his outsourcing business
made him a multi-millionaire and he is prepared to spend millions from
his own wallet and from right-wing special interests to attack me.
The national Republicans have already said they will spend over $2
million this cycle. We have all seen the kinds of tactics they will
stoop to lower themselves and their candidates. As always, I will
stand up and fight for Long Island values and what is right, but I
need your help: Contribute to my campaign today.
Any contribution you can make will send a powerful message and I
will be most grateful.
With sincere thanks,
Tim
Tim Bishop
Member of Congress
[Here are the links to the articles he mentions, an opinion piece from USA Today and a story on the coming election in Newsday.]
Health insurance is a growing crisis on Long Island. There are 3 million people in Nassau and Suffolk counties alone. Lots of people are unemployed or working part-time, have just graduated from college and/or have been denied coverage by an insurance company. Long Islanders who haven't experienced this certainly know someone who has. For our families, friends and neighbors, we need to attend and stand up for a strong public option, and also to clarify and explain the benefits of a single-payer plan for those who seem to misunderstand it (or those "Keep the Government Away from my Medicare" folks who don't even recognize that they have it already).
But it will be a fight. In Suffolk, we've slowly been turning blue over the last few years, but there's a pretty strong pushback from the GOP, which resents the demise of one party rule now that the Democratic party has organized some successful campaigns. (Brookhaven town used to be known as "Crookhaven" because of the corruption here). It's still pretty divided here, and there's a lot of very wealthy people who'd just love to go back to one party rule.
A strong showing on Thursday will speak volumes. Tim Bishop has made a principled stand, he faced down the angry mob with reason and quiet passion, and I for one think he deserves our strong support.
See you on Thursday?