The Republican crazies showing up at Democratic "Town Hall" meetings are living proof of Darwinian evolution. Like the Swine Flu, these crazies are simply the latest mutation of a virus that has been with us for a long time - having mutated from the angry white males (and their wives) of the 90’s, the virus is now quickly mutating from teabaggers to birthers to raging town hall disrupters. They were cultivated from a viral petri dish with a toxic mix of racism and anti-immigration, and have been nourished by Rushes, Becks, Billos and their mini-me’s.
Fortunately for us – we have a new generation that appears far more resistant to these toxic viruses. Our anti-bodies are working. The teabaggers just looked silly and they didn’t get the numbers or passion they hoped. The newer mutation of birthers appeared inane, and now the Ragers have finally found a host worth invading – Democratic Town Hall meetings.
Lacking the ability to draw on reasoning and facts to engage in any real discussion or exchange of ideas, they have a deliberate preference for ignorance. Make no mistake – facts don’t matter. Instead, they prefer to scream loudly enough – temper tantrum style – to allow no one else to speak.
The exceptions, town hall meetings like the one in Maryland where Rep. Donna Edwards was actually able to converse with her constituents, was not due to her amazing ability to stand down the Ragers (although she may be amazing) – it was simply a matter of lucky geography, district drawing and timing. Edwards won her district with 86% of the vote in the heavily Democratic Maryland. She was not as inundated as some other town halls.
Kathy Castor’s district in Tampa is surrounded by Republicans and a bible belt. She was also very tough and impressive – but to no avail. This was a crowd of 200 people inside and with 800 or so people outside pounding on the doors and screaming. It was just as out-of-control inside – with the group shouting "under God" like thugs during the pledge and professing "C Street" Christianity. The Golden Rule at this Town Hall was to shout, pound and howl, so that no speaker could be heard.
Most of the Ragers were not even from Castor’s district. Jessica Lane, Karen Jaroch, Kathy and Randy Arthur, and Barry Osteen were all quoted in local media as part of crowd inside the building who chanted, ironically, "You work for us. Hear our voices." Yet not one of them is registered to vote in Castor’s district. They all stormed the meeting from outside her district. These Ragers were incited to attend and disrupt by Rush and Beck, and did the bidding of 9-12 and Freedom Works – front groups funded by corporate health care to push its agenda.
A guarantee of affordable, public health care access to all has the support of more than 70% of Americans. We need to remember the morphed viral teabaggers, birthers, and Ragers are not numerous – but concentrated in the South and other identifiable pockets. When they attend a town hall, a relatively small group of Ragers can successfully disrupt any meeting – and a large group like the one that came in from all around Tampa, can smash a meeting.
So what’s a Democrat to do? Democrats were told to tough it out – stand and deliver your message, and several have done a good job while being drowned out by the non-stop shouting of the Ragers. The abuse has become so bad that many believe the viewing public is actually becoming sympathetic to their Representatives and Senators. That’s quite a feat, Ragers!
Despite the raging and shrieking bullies, the Town Hall meeting and our commitment to the free exchange of ideas and a civil society can and will survive. These town halls should not be a dangerous, angry free-for-alls. Instead of simply eliminating town hall meetings, resorting to phone calls only or letting the front groups deny your constituents contact with you, consider other options:
- Invitation only town hall meeting open only to constituents. Town Hall the Obama way; many Obama campaign events where over-crowding was likely became ticketed events. Make tickets available ahead of time through your office and email. A well managed event will allow for the free exchange of ideas and provide for an elected representative to hear from their constituents.
Provide tickets only to registered voters (Democrats, Republicans and Independents) constituents from your district. You have a responsibility to your constituents to communicate with and represent them – not to Rush or Beck’s audience (unless they live in your district). Why should out of district Ragers be allowed to come and hijack your town hall meeting instead of your constituents with real concerns and questions? Last I checked I lived in a representative democracy. The Ragers should rage to their own representatives. Offer tickets to people who have contacted your office – with a diversity of questions and concerns.
Like the Obama rallies, this simple step can eliminate the angry mob waiting to get in at the start of your meeting. More than a few hundred people are too many people for productive town hall meeting. You can always try to schedule more meetings if needed.
Provide name tags at the door. Anonymous people are more willing to surrender to vicious and crazy Rager peer pressure. Clearly identified attendees, while being free to disagree with policy or ask hard questions, if they are sane, will want to maintain a shred of community respect; and identifiable mob leaders are less likely to stand up and orchestrate ugliness.
Get tough. You need security on hand. Make a statement at the start and be willing to have those that violate the free speech rights of others removed from the meeting. Only a teacher with poor classroom management skills allows a few disruptive kids to control the class.
- Enlist public media. Every state Representative and Senator should be invited and encouraged to do a call-in, town hall discussion on every public radio and television station in the nation. We support the stations, and they are owned by the public. Where is our public media? And how about some national debate? We could have some back and forth between Democrats and Republicans nationally on our public media.
- Improve online presence. I was listening to talk radio the other day and someone asked where they could get information and they were directed to whitehouse.gov so I checked it out. Unbelievable – you cannot find any information on health care on the White House site. If you scroll down the bottom and click on the tiny health care print, you can get information on the Children’s Health Care Program from a few months ago. Every Democratic member of Congress and every Democratic elected legislator should have Health Care featured on their sites, with links and bells and whistles. And while you’re at it, maybe an online town hall meeting.