" You were elected to serve the people. And if you fail to pass or support this legislation, the full wrath of the progressive and the moderate movements in this country will come down on your heads. Explain yourselves not to me, but to them. They elected you, and in the blink of an eye, they will replace you.
If you will behave as if you are Republicans - as if you are the prostitutes of our system -you will be judged as such. And you will lose not merely our respect. You will lose your jobs!
Every poll, every analysis, every vote, every region of this country supports health care reform, and the essential great leveling agent of a government-funded alternative to the unchecked duopoly of profiteering private insurance corporations. Cross us all at your peril."
From Keith Olbermann's HEALTH CARE SPECIAL COMMENTS
Public Opinion Polls show an overwhelming number of American want real substantive Healthcare Reform- but many of their political representatives have become hired Schills for the Healthcare industry -
Healthcare industry is in it for the profits not for the health of average Americans and they will indeed resort to all and any means necessary to stop Healthcare reform
Americans for Prosperity & Freedom Works to oppose what they characterize as the socialist agenda of President Obama in his attempt to reform healthcare
More on "Brown Shirted Republicans Insurrection"- Orchestrated anti-Democratic Disturbances
Hooliganism & Mob Mentality NAZI style harassment
Intimidation By Lobbying Organizations working for the Republican Party in concert with the Big Pharmaceutical and Health insurance industry
Rachel Maddow: "GOP Thugs" At Health Care Forums-August 3,2009
Near-Riots at Townhall Meetings Are Fake
The Young Turks -Aug. 3,2009
Watch more at http://www.theyoungturks.com
HEALTH CARE SPECIAL COMMENTS BY KEITH OLBERMANN
Polls show that a majority of Americans support Healthcare Reform Yet "Blue-dog Democrats" and Republicans don't work for the people but for The Greedy Private Health Care Industry
HEALTH CARE SPECIAL COMMENTS BY KEITH OLBERMANN(PART2)
And from Desert Beacon blog some more information on the organizations behind the Faux Populist anti-Healthcare Reform.
This Disrupted Town Hall Meeting Brought To You By Sheldon Adelson & Companions, Desert Beacon, July 31, 2009
Freedom Works the right wing organization funded in part by Nevada's very own casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, [DS] is contributing to the din of opposition to any form of significant health care reform in this country. [TP] According to the Atlantic we can expect a coalition of organizations to promote more “Tea Parties” such as the American Liberty Alliance (message board group), FreedomWorks, and Americans for Prosperity, coordinated by the Chicago based Sam Adams Alliance (which does not disclose its donors) and the American Majority political training institute. The Sam Adams Alliance is run by former “Americans for Limited Government” activist Eric O'Keefe, who backed ballot initiatives for “Taxpayer Bill of Rights” in Colorado and in several other states. [NYT]
FreedomWorks and the American Future Fund will provide members with lists of town hall meetings, sites, times, and locations, along with prepared questions. The Atlantic article posts three examples of the prepared questions. Americans for Prosperity has launched an anti-Obama-health-care-reform bus tour of 13 states. [Atlantic] The American Future Fund is led by political professionals who worked for former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney's 2008 presidential nomination bid. [NPR]
Americans for Prosperity is the successor organization to “Citizens for a Sound Economy,” and initially worked on behalf of the tobacco industry to defeat smokefree workplace laws and tobacco product taxation. In 2008 the group sponsored a Hot Air tour calling advocacy of climate change mitigation legislation “alarmist.” Former McCain Campaign spokesperson, Nancy Pfotenhauer, was the first president of the organization which is funded by the Roe Foundation, the Ruth & Lovett Peters Foundation, the Lambe Foundation, and the ever present right wing funding source – the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation. [Sourcewatch]
The American Majority political training institute is run by Ned Ryun, son of former U.S. Congressman Jim Ryun, and a former writer for President George W. Bush. The organization espouses: “Training and equipping a national network of conservative leadership committed to helping America remain a strong and free nation through limited government, individual freedom and the free market system". It gives examples of these principles, such as strengthened property rights, educational freedom for individuals, reduced corporate taxes and decreased government spending.” [SR]
These are the groups distributing the “Rocking the Town Halls – Best Practices” political action memos, which advocate disrupting and attempting to create the impression that there is widespread opposition to health care reform.
In case you missed it here is the article on the "staged protests" from Think Progress
Right-Wing Harassment Strategy Against Dems Detailed In Memo: ‘Yell,’ ‘Stand Up And Shout Out,’ ‘Rattle Him’ by Lee Fang,ThinkProgress.org , July 1, 2009
This morning, Politico reported that Democratic members of Congress are increasingly being harassed by “angry, sign-carrying mobs and disruptive behavior” at local town halls. For example, in one incident, right-wing protesters surrounded Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY) and forced police officers to have to escort him to his car for safety.
This growing phenomenon is often marked by violence and absurdity. Recently, right-wing demonstrators hung Rep. Frank Kratovil (D-MD) in effigy outside of his office. Missing from the reporting of these stories is the fact that much of these protests are coordinated by public relations firms and lobbyists who have a stake in opposing President Obama’s reforms.
The lobbyist-run groups Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks, which orchestrated the anti-Obama tea parties earlier this year, are now pursuing an aggressive strategy to create an image of mass public opposition to health care and clean energy reform. A leaked memo from Bob MacGuffie, a volunteer with the FreedomWorks website Tea Party Patriots, details how members should be infiltrating town halls and harassing Democratic members of Congress:
Tea Bagger Memo
– Artificially Inflate Your Numbers: “Spread out in the hall and try to be in the front half. The objective is to put the Rep on the defensive with your questions and follow-up. The Rep should be made to feel that a majority, and if not, a significant portion of at least the audience, opposes the socialist agenda of Washington.”
– Be Disruptive Early And Often: “You need to rock-the-boat early in the Rep’s presentation, Watch for an opportunity to yell out and challenge the Rep’s statements early.”
– Try To “Rattle Him,” Not Have An Intelligent Debate: “The goal is to rattle him, get him off his prepared script and agenda. If he says something outrageous, stand up and shout out and sit right back down. Look for these opportunities before he even takes questions.”
The memo above also resembles the talking points being distributed by FreedomWorks for pushing an anti-health reform assault all summer. Patients United, a front group maintained by Americans for Prosperity, is currently busing people all over the country for more protests against Democratic members. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX), chairman of the NRCC, has endorsed the strategy, telling the Politico the days of civil town halls are now “over.”
Meanwhile, AHIP, the trade group and lobbying juggernaut representing the health insurance industry is sending staffers to monitor town halls and other right-wing front groups are stepping up their ad campaign to smear reform efforts. The strategy for defeating reform — recently outlined by an influential lobbyist to the Hill newspaper as “delay” then “kill” — is becoming apparent. By delaying a vote until after the August recess, lobbyists are now seizing upon recess town halls as opportunities to ambush lawmakers and fool them into believing there is wide opposition to reform.
and so it goes,
GORD.
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