The Unglued American Left

From Stephen Kruiser, "Of Town Halls, Health Care & The Unglued American Left":

You almost have to feel sorry for the progressives, this was all supposed to be so easy for them ....

The scenario that danced around in the heads of the progressives went like this: we’ve got the president we want, a Senate leader who is wholly incapable of original thought and will obey like a whipped dog and a House Speaker from San Francisco, for Marx’s sake, to implement our agenda. This should be done in an hour or so.

What they are getting, thankfully, is a painful lesson about the difficulties of turning ill-conceived cotton candy rhetoric into something substantive.

So they’re acting out.

And lying almost non-stop.

They are lying about the true nature of health care reform. It’s a bridge to the single-payer system that President Obama has wanted all along. Which he is now lying about. I’m not speculating, I’m listening to a prominent Democratic senator.

They are most certainly lying about welcoming debate on health care. It’s not possible to ram complex legislation through Congress to meet an unrealistically quick deadline and have a substantive debate about it at the same time.

More at the link.

See also, Michael Gerson, "After the Thrill Is Gone."

More at Memeorandum.

Bratton's Resignation: Major Blow to Los Angeles

Recall the recent editorial at the Los Angeles Times on the Michael Jackson memorial, "The Michael Jackson memorial: City Hall blew it; With the Exception of the Police Department, the City's Handling of the Event Was Disorganized, Cheap and Pathetic."

That's something to keep in mind with the news this week of Police Chief William Bratton's resignationt. See, "Bratton's Exit Poses a Major Challenge for L.A.":

William J. Bratton's announcement Wednesday that he would resign as chief of the Los Angeles Police Department caught Angelenos by surprise, including the mayor and police leaders who suddenly found themselves confronted with the daunting task of replacing one of the nation's most influential law enforcement figures.

Bratton's unexpected decision set in motion what promises to be an intense and wide-ranging search for his successor. With just three months before Bratton departs for his new job as head of a private security firm, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and others involved in the selection must act quickly or face the less palatable option of putting an interim leader in place - something Villaraigosa said during a news conference that he'd rather not do.

See also, "Will Bratton's Reforms Survive After His Departure?":

He came to Los Angeles in 2002, a brash New Englander in a hurry to make his mark and unwilling to mince words.

When a community activist attacked the department, Chief William J. Bratton went on CNN and labeled him a "nitwit." When the City Council refused his request for more officers, he bellowed: "Let them start attending some of the funerals of the victims of crime."

But behind the sometimes in-your-face demeanor, Bratton was also a listener, a skilled politician and -- above all -- an effective cop.

He quietly made his way through South Los Angeles, meeting with black ministers and community activists to talk about race and crime. He demanded that his officers change the way they police and imposed strong discipline for misconduct -- yet he maintained the support of the rank and file.

He presided over a steep drop in crime that left the city safer than it has been in decades. And he managed to persuade two successive mayors to make hiring more officers a top priority -- even when that meant cutting into other programs.

Now, as Bratton is about to leave the city's political stage, some civic leaders expressed concern Wednesday about whether his impressive legacy can be sustained and whether he exited too early.

"I wish he had stayed at least another two years," said Connie Rice, a civil rights attorney and longtime advocate for police reform. "I would not be surprised to see the organization slip back."

More reaction here, "Legacy of America's Top Cop."

Los Angeles City College Cuts Sports Program

Pretty big story on the education crisis in California. Los Angeles City College guts sports to save academics, "L.A. City College Suspends Sports Program":

See also my previous report, "California's Master Plan for Higher Education: Facing Crisis."

OMGWTFSCARY! Meet the Town Hall Mobs!

From Dana Loesch, "Meet the Mob":

You’ve heard a lot about this crazy, scary, vicious mob on some shadowy GOP payroll. By the way the DNC, Rachel Maddow, and President Obama talk, you’d think it was a motley crue of Hell’s Angels.

Let me introduce you to the mob:

See also, Big Dog's Weblog, "Town Hall Meetings Un-American?":

The poor Democrats really don’t know what to do- they thought that protesting was exclusively their domain. They don’t know how to handle this “civil disobedience” from the right, even though this stuff is tame compared to the trashing of Tom Tancredo’s free speech rights at the University of North Carolina, or the Minutemen gathering at Columbia University by members of the left. At those gatherings, people’s lives were in danger, and the protesters did not even act human. But then, that’s the left for you.

So now Babs Boxer and Di Feinstein come out and say that these town halls are rigged and “Astroturfed”, as in artificially stirred up. Right out of the radical playbook of Saul Alinsky- ridicule your opponent, and marginalize whatever they say.

Nothing could be further from the truth- These people have one thing in common, whether they are (or were) Democrats, Independents, or Republicans. They know they are being screwed to the wall by King Hussein the Spineless, and they see that he wants to dismantle or country by doing away with any incentive to succeed via the freedom to earn as much money as you can.

Read the whole thing, here.

More at Memeorandum.

Union Thuggery in Tampa!

From Atlas Shrugs, "Tampa, St. Louis ...Obama's Union Thugs are Beating People up at Town Hall Meetings":

The unifier, the great post-American hopenchange fascist, has adopted the street tactics of Chicago thug politics to ram his takeover down our throats. Well, the people are not going quietly - thank G-d. His ACORN/SEIU/Union goons are beating the folks up. America has been sucker punched. Check out this video - stay with it...union thugs are beating up Randy Arthur at Castor town hall meeting in Tampa on Thursday. This is low grade civil war. Are they ratcheting up civil unrest so that they can call in reinforcements? We the people! They answer to us.

More at Memeorandum.

It Looks Like They Are About to Bust into 'Springtime For Hitler'

From the comments at a 2007 Christy Hardin Smith essay at FDL, "Bush Budget A Joke?":

It looks like they are about to bust into “Springtime For Hitler.”

Also, Democratic Underground has a compilation of the "Best of 'BusHitler'":

“Bushitler” (George W. Bush comparable to Adolf Hitler).

So folks can excuse me for laughing at teh stupid at Firedoglake right now, "The Other":

We live in a culture where one side is led by rational accommodationists who want to get along and the other, smaller side, led by a delusional, angry, id who want the majority to surrender. Millions of people "hoped", if nothing else, the tenor of politics would be improved only to find that racist, bigoted messages and implications to violence are more prevalent and more tolerated: Steve Pearlstein of the Washington Post:

Health reform is a test of whether this country can function once again as a civil society -- whether we can trust ourselves to embrace the big, important changes that require everyone to give up something in order to make everyone better off. Republican leaders are eager to see us fail that test. We need to show them that no matter how many lies they tell or how many scare tactics they concoct, Americans will come together and get this done.

If health reform is to be anyone's Waterloo, let it be theirs.

Yeah. Right.

See also, "The Democrats’ Hypocritical Demonization of ObamaCare Protesters."

More at Memeorandum.

The Democrats’ Hypocritical Demonization of ObamaCare Protesters

I'm looking over all of this morning's commentary on the healthcare town halls. I'm tickled at the various reactions from Democrats to the citizens' uprising that we're witnessing. Paul Krugman, try as he might, ends up calling ObamaCare protesters "racist." Let's call Krugman's take the Ivy League version of Janeane Garofalo's infamous excoration, "This is racism straight up."

But Neo-Neocon's got a balanced take on all of this, from the perspective of, "Hey, I'm might be a little upset too if the Democrats were trying to screw me under." See, "The Democrats’ Hypocritical Demonization of Health Reform Protesters":

It’s a tried and true method of political posturing: demonizing the opposition. It’s been especially popular with the Obama administration and the Pelosi-Reid Congress.

But if I were a moderate Democrat or an independent, one who had voted for Obama but was now feeling some wariness about the health care reform bill, how would I react to these sorts of statements by the Democratic National Committee? I believe the answer would be: with increasing distrust and resentment.

That’s because, although I would concede that some of the town hall agitators are probably exactly as described by the DNC, I would also very likely know quite a few persons in the real world who are just as angry about the current health care reform bill as those seen in the videos of the town hall meetings. And I would know that those people I’m acquainted with are not paid operatives. I might not even consider them especially extreme in their views. In fact, I might share some of their deep concerns about the bill as written — including the fact that it’s so long and complex and ever-changing that I’m not really sure what it contains right now, and I’m not sure my representative knows, either.

I might be angry at the idea that the member of the House or Senate who represents me is likely to have failed to even read the bill yet and may not plan to, and that Obama’s press secretary hedged when asked whether President Obama has read it or intends to do so. And I might even be angry about “the agenda for change” currently being implemented, thinking it’s not exactly what I thought “the president was elected to bring to Washington.”

Read the whole thing at the link.

Obama's Health Plan Will Succeed (At Getting People to Die Faster)

From Mark Schiller, M.D., at FrontPage Magazine:

Many critics are busy complaining that President Obama's healthcare reform plans are doomed to failure. It would be nice if they would just quit their whining and get back to caring for their polo ponies or something, because it's clear that the plan will be successful. Think about it -- as severely
ill people die more quickly, costs will inevitably be cut.

It's really quite simple. Take cancer treatment. If we can just make sure to treat cancer patients with older, cheaper, more ineffective treatments, then treatment will actually be more effective -- at cutting costs as more cancer patients die. We not only save the cost of more expensive medication -- we also save by relying on less expensive stays in hospices instead of more extended active treatments.

More importantly, if we can help patients die quickly now, then we can save on the cost of any future major illnesses they would've had that would have cost society a whole boatload of money. Basically, one severe potentially terminal illness is cheaper than two. Some cancer patients may try to demand more up-to-date, effective treatments, but society must obviously ignore their selfish desires to live.

The Obama plan is going to accomplish this with its billion-dollar investment in "comparative-effectiveness research." This is a coup, because it sounds so rational and scientific. A sophisticated observer can see that it will be "comparatively effective" at reducing the rate at which new, more effective treatments are utilized. The kind of large, expensive studies required to prove that newer treatments are less effective at killing off patients will be so difficult to conduct that the newly created "Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research" (or FCCCER, pronounced faux care) will have cover for many years before it's compelled to approve any new treatment.

Such is the excellent model provided by Great Britain's National Institute for Clinical Excellence, known by the wonderful acronym NICE. Indeed it was "NICE" how the agency "regrettably" found last summer that four admittedly "clinically effective" lifesaving medications for kidney cancer were not "cost-effective uses of NHS resources." NICE has been wildly successful in shortening the overall amount of time that the British medical system is forced to treat cancer patients. In Great Britain, survival rates after a cancer diagnosis range from 40.2 to 48.1 percent for men and 48 to 54.1 percent for women. The United States currently boasts an inefficiently high rate of 66 percent for men and 63 percent for women.

See also, Kim Priestap, "Ezekiel Emanuel: Deny Coverage to Elderly and Disabled for the Greater Good."

Angry Constituents Hammer Congressman Chris Murphy at Super Stop and Shop Town Hall!

Via Glenn Reynolds, from the Hartford Courant, "Protesters Confront U.S. Representative At Simsbury Supermarket Meeting":

Chanting "Dump Chris Dodd" and "No national health care," scores of angry constituents confronted U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy at a meet-and-greet outside the Super Stop & Shop Wednesday afternoon.

Murphy, a Democrat who represents the 5th District, routinely holds informal office hours at supermarkets and strip malls, but such gatherings are generally uneventful. This time, many of the 150 or so attendees were so boisterous that Stop & Shop management called the police to ask that the crowd be moved from the store's entrance.

The scene in Simsbury is being replayed throughout the nation this week as congressional Democrats convene town hall forums and other public get-togethers to win support for the Obama administration's plan to overhaul the health care system.

One conservative group critical of the plan has put out a call to members, encouraging them to attend these gatherings and voice their opposition to the member of Congress hosting the event. U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd, a Democrat and a leading architect of the health care overhaul, has become a chief target.

Democrats pointed to the rowdy, sometimes vicious tone of some of the comments and said that the protests were part of a well-funded and organized effort to derail the health care plan. Wednesday's protest drew activists from the Tea Party movement and the so-called Dump Dodd campaign.

But many who attended were not affiliated with an established group. Maryann Culkin, a stay-at-home mother from Avon, said she represents no one but herself. She went to Stop & Shop simply because she wanted to have a word or two with her congressman.

"For the first time in my life, I'm embarrassed and scared of where my country is going," Culkin told Murphy. She is worried about how the government will pay for Obama's health care policies.

Murphy apparently wasn't too happy about the protest. Maybe he'll get the message and vote no on ObamaCare.

Carolyn Tackett: No Rioting at Tampa Town Hall; Priority Seating for SEIU Thugs!

Here's a report from Tampa, at Carol's Closet, "The Tampa Townhall WAS NOT Open To The Public - UPDATED":

From time to time people would come outside from the building carrying Obama signs and yell at the crowd. A woman wearing a Obama tee shirt came out and got in to the face of an elderly man standing near me. I've got to give him credit, he held his own even when she was literally nose to nose with him. A policeman worked his way over and told her to move on. At another point, a man came to the doorway who had his shirt all but ripped off and bleeding from scratches in his chest. People rushed forward to find out what happened and I ended up so pent in that I couldn't even raise my arms to get a picture. Despite how he looked, it didn't appear that he was badly hurt because he was smiling and laughing while talking to the police. He was only a few feet away from me but I couldn't hear anything he was saying. I have no idea which "side" attacked him ....

There were a couple of women who had signs that said, "please fix health care." Even when the crowd got loud, the women were treated with respect and everyone gave them room.

At one point someone in an Obama shirt opened the door that I was standing right in front of. Standing just inside was a union member that is affiliated with my employer. He saw me and took my picture. The man standing next to noticed and I explained the situation to him. Within moments I had several people ask me if I would be "okay" and I assured them that I would be. I was really touched that total strangers would show concern for me.

Carolyn adds this update, from Red State:

Early reports coming in from Florida indicate the hastily scheduled townhall with Kathy Castor ended badly, as predicted, because of SEIU thugs.

The event was conveniently held in a forum where only 250 people could fit. 1000 people showed up. SEIU members were given reserved seating that took up at least half of the 250 seats. As people came in who visibly oppose the Democrats healthcare plan, SEIU members barred access to the room.

Again, the people I saw were angry and loud but well behaved. It was awful to stand for so long in blistering heat and humidity only to fins out that the organizers had stacked the hall. There was shouting. People did let their feelings known but I want to emphasize that there was no riot.

My previous report, with video, is here.

Tampa ObamaCare Town Hall Protest: Reports of Violence

Democratic Representative Kathy Castor left early from a healthcare town hall today in Tampa Bay, Florida. The St. Petersburg Times has the report, "Protesters Drown Out Tampa Health Care Summit":

Bitter divisions over reforming America's health care system exploded Thursday night in Tampa amid cat calls, jeering and shoving at a town hall meeting.

"Tyranny! Tyranny! Tyranny!" dozens of people shouted as U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor struggled to talk about health insurance reforms under consideration in Washington, D.C.

"There is more consensus than there is disagreement when you get right down to it,'' Castor offered, immediately drowned out by groans and boos.

She pressed on, mostly unheard among the screams from the audience of more than 200.

"Tell the truth! Tell the truth!"

"Read the bill!"

"Forty-million illegals! Forty million illegals!"

The spectacle at the Children's Board in Ybor City sounded more like a wrestling cage match than a panel discussion on national policy, and it was just the latest example of a health care meeting disrupted by livid protesters. Similar scenes are likely to be repeated across the country as lawmakers head back to their home districts for the summer recess.

Thursday's forum/near riot was sponsored by state Rep. Betty Reed, D-Tampa, and the Service Employees International Union, who apparently had hoped to hold something of a pep rally for President Obama's health care reform proposal.

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 to challenge supporters.

An overflow crowd of critics was left waiting outside the building – and in some cases pounding on the meeting room doors – while health care reform activists complained that Democrats and union members were guided into the room for prime seats.

This is a surprisingly balanced article. The piece indicates that the protests are "driving home" the "keen opposition to the health care plan."

Tampa's local Fox affiliate reports that over 1000 people turned out for the event. Allahpundit reports that at least one "fistfight" broke out and there were "some scuffles." Police made no arrests, but Allah points ou that this could be the left's "Kristallnacht."

Get Ready to See Nazi Town Hall Protesters With Swastikas

Well, now that Nancy Pelosi smeared town hall protesters as Nazis carrying swastikas, we can expect to see a bunch of leftists infiltrate rallies with ... wait for it ... Nazi paraphernalia and swastikas. I guess it's happening already, according to Sam Stein, "Anti-Obama Protester Compares President To Nazi In Swastika Sign." (Via Memeorandum.) Stein notes that the "image was provided to the Huffington Post by a reader who is a Democrat." Whoa! I'm shocked. The protest was held last week, so who can say if that's the reader's friend posing for the photo?

Either way, we'll be seeing a few more of these images in no time.

Meanwhile, check out Michelle Malkin's post, "How to Dress Like an 'Authentic' Grass-Roots Activist."

Michelle links to Zombie's "Hall of Shame." Here's a few samples, all from San Francisco, California:

"Woman fully exercising her freedom of speech at the anti-war rally on September 24, 2005":

"Rioters burning Bush in effigy and the American flag following the post-election rally on November 3, 2004":

"A prediction of what the future holds, at the post-election rally on November 3, 2004":

The activist base of today's Democratic Party (scroll down that link ... "Bush-Hitler Comparison Endorsed By Minnesota Democrats").

And these folks have the nerve to call everyday town hall activists "Nazis" and "tea-bagging racist thugs."

Sonia Sotomayor Confirmed for Supreme Court

Kind of anticlimactic, but Judge Sotomayor's been confirmed. From the Los Angeles Times, "Senate Confirms Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court":

Sonia Sotomayor completed an unlikely and historic journey today, one that began with her birth in a Bronx, New York, housing project 55 years ago and culminated in her confirmation as the Supreme Court's 111th justice.

When she is sworn into office, Sotomayor will take her place as the high court's first Latino and just its third woman. She was approved by a 68-31 Senate vote after three days of debate. Nine Republicans crossed party lines to support her.

Sotomayor was nominated in May by President Obama to replace retiring Justice David H. Souter. A judge on the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals for the last 11 years, Sotomayor worked her way through two Ivy League schools and was a Manhattan prosecutor and corporate lawyer before joining the federal bench.

But the pride felt by Latino groups over her historic nomination quickly gave way to a firestorm, as critics seized upon a speech Sotomayor gave to a group of students in 2001. Sotomayor suggested that her life experience as a Latina shaped her judging, and her remarks became known, almost notoriously, as the "wise Latina" speech.

Sotomayor's opponents charged that the speech and some of her decisions on the bench showed an inclination to use the law to favor disadvantaged minority groups. And they pointed to one case in particular -- in which Sotomayor's appellate court panel threw out a discrimination suit brought by white firefighters in New Haven, Conn. -- as evidence of their claim.

But the controversy never appeared to seriously threaten her nomination.

See also, The Hill, "Senate Confirms Sotomayor, First Hispanic Justice (via Memeorandum).

Whoa Nelly! More See Obama as Failure Than Bush at Six Months!

From Tom Bevan, "After 6 Months, More View Obama's Presidency as a 'Failure' Than Bush's":

A rather surprising finding from the newly released CNN poll. Question three on the national survey of 1,136 adults (which includes an oversample of African-Americans) asks, "Do you consider the first six months of the Obama administration to be a success or a failure?"

Thirty-seven percent (37%) said they believe the Obama administration is a "failure," while 51% consider it a "success" and 11% say it's still "too soon to tell."

An identical question was asked of the Bush administration in an August 2001 CNN/Gallup/USA Today survey. At the time, 56% said the Bush administration was a "success" while only 32% considered it a "failure."

Check Bevan's post for the links!

And check Memeorandum.

AARP Staffers Bail Out as Retired (Swastika-Bearing) Astroturfers Shut Down Town Hall Meeting!

Via Red State, "Behold Those Scary, Scary Swastika-Bearing Astroturfers." Also, Pat in Shreveport's got the report:

Watch this video from the AARP Town Hall on health care in Dallas, August 4, 2009. The AARP representatives did not want to hear from the members at all; in fact, once the members began to ask questions, the meeting was officially shut down. The members, however, continued without them. Stunning ...

These members were not violent or threatening; they had questions. Just questions. And concerns. They were not plants by some insurance company or right-wing extremist group. They are ordinary citizens.

Also, at AOSHQ, "Gray Mafia: Senior Mobsters Take on AARP Reps on "Listening" Tour, Who Quickly Get Tired of Listening and Cancel Meeting."

And Michelle Malkin, "Revolt Against AARP in Dallas: “Do You Work for Us or Do We Work for You?”

There'll be a huge thread for this on Memeorandum, but not yet, not yet ...

More Democratic Disinformation on ObamaCare: Jane Hamsher, MSNBC's David Shuster Tweak Outdated Poll to Claim '76 Percent Want Public Option'

Jane Hamsher and David Shuster teamed-up on MSNBC yesterday to spread lies about public support for ObamaCare:

At one point, Hamsher claims that "76 percent" of Americans want the public option; and Shuster, in the wrap up, asks what's up with the Democrats, "they can't push through a public option that most of these people want"?

Behold more Democratic healthcare lies. Hamsher's referencing the data cited at her Firedoglake post yesterday, "Democratic “Infighting,” Or Keeping Blue Dogs From Selling Out Health Care?" That entry cites a June NBC/Wall Street Journal survey that found 76 percent agreeing it was important that health care reform include a "choice of both a public plan administered by the federal government and a private plan for their health insurance."

Not only is that finding badly outdated, you can't stretch it to argue that 76 percent of the country wants "a public plan to compete with the private insurance industry, because they hate them and don't trust their health care to them," as does Hamsher at her post.

It's not just sneaky, it's a lie. Hamsher's citing two-month old polling data

Subsequent subsequent surveys have rounded out the picture quite a bit, and conservative activism has taken a toll on the administration's popular support.

For example, see Gallup's report from mid-July, "More Disapprove Than Approve of Obama on Healthcare." Also, in July, Rasmussen reported, "Cost, Not Universal Coverage, is Top Health Care Concern for Voters."

And a CNN poll out yesterday found that "eight out of 10 people are satisfied with their own health care and nearly three out of four are happy with their own insurance." Also, a 44 percent plurality agreed that Obama's "proposals would help other families in this country, but would not help you and your family." Note too, as today's Quinnipiac University National Poll indicates, 52 percent of Americans disapprove of the way the administration is handling health care reform.

The truth is that Democrats are desperate, and they'll do just about anything to try to win the battle over media-framing and public opinion.

Related: The Washington Post, "Senators Closer To Health Package: Bipartisan Talks On Reform Move Toward Center." See also, Pundit & Pundette, "Maybe They're Just Crazy?," and Ed Morrissey, "Say, Isn’t This Astroturfing?" (via Memeorandum).

Remember the Hooligans! Pathetic Democratic Fearmonging Gets More Pathetic; ObamaCare Fiasco Chews Up Administration's Political Capital

The banner headline at the Huffington Post screams, "TOWN HALL SHOWDOWNS: Unions Vow To Engage Protesters Head On Over Health Care!"

Clicking the link actually leads us to a rather tame article from Sam Stein, "Unions to Take On Conservative Groups Health Care Town Halls." You've got to love this part:

In a memo sent out on Thursday, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney outlined the blueprint for how the union conglomerate would step up recess activities on health care reform and other topics pertinent to the labor community. The document makes clear that Obama allies view the town hall forums as ground zero of the health care debate. It also uses the specter of the infamous 2000 recount "Brooks Brothers" protest to rally its members to the administration's side.

"The principal battleground in the campaign will be town hall meetings and other gatherings with members of Congress in their home districts," reads the memo. "We want your help to organize major union participation to counter the right-wing "Tea-Party Patriots" who will try to disrupt those meetings, as they've been trying to do to meetings for the last month. ...

(Remember the hooligans - many of them Republican Congressional staff - who harassed Florida vote counters in 2000? We can't let that happen again!)."

We can't let that happen again?

What happened in Florida is obviously beside the point (although Dems didn't miss the chance to launch a national protest "explosion" at the time). No one is allegedly "harassing" vote counters today. Regular folks are coming out in large numbers to show their opposition to the Democratic takeover of private healthcare markets. Voters are steaming mad - yeah, voters, not a bunch of Nazis with swastikas.

Now the Democrats are totally freaking out! As CNN reports, President Obama's poll numbers of dropped 7 points over last 100 days. And today's Quinnipiac University National Poll finds Obama with just a 50 percent public approval rating, and 52 "disapprove of the way he is handling health care."

Click here for more updates!

See also, Gathering of Eagles NY, "SEIU Front Group Declares War On Tea Party Patriots."

Democrats Face Hostile Homecomings at District Meetings

Janet Hook fails the objectivity standard in her piece, at the Chicago Tribune, "Democrats face hostile homecomings from health care reform critics: Health care reform critics get tougher at district meetings."

Could it be that Congress is failing Americans and folks are really mad? No Janet a congressman in effigy doesn't mean protesters are KKK:

An effigy of Rep. Frank Kratovil was hung outside his office on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Rep. Steve Kagen of Wisconsin was shouted down by angry constituents. Rep. Tim Bishop of New York had such a raucous experience with critics on Long Island that he is avoiding town hall meetings for more manageable settings.

The spark for the political firestorm surrounding these lawmakers has been President Barack Obama's effort to overhaul the health care system. The debate has gotten especially ugly now that Congress has adjourned for a monthlong summer recess, and critics have mobilized in force.

The intensity of the opposition is a pointed reminder of how hard it will be for Democrats to sell voters on a broad reworking of the health care system, even though they hold commanding majorities in Congress.

At the same time that Democrats are trying to show the need for change, powerful special interests are deep into a campaign to portray the legislation, which is still being written, as a government takeover of health care that will disrupt voters' established relationships with doctors.

Democrats say the disruption of lawmakers' meetings does not reflect broad public opposition to their health care plans. Rather, they say, it is arising from an orchestrated effort by conservative groups, GOP leaders and "astroturf" organizations that claim to represent grass-roots voters but are backed by special interests.

This is hardly the first time that lawmakers' town hall meetings have been swamped with emotional outpourings during a congressional recess. In past years, lawmakers got an earful about cracking down on illegal Immigration and on former President George W. Bush's plan for overhauling Social Security.

Still, the rancor this year is noteworthy.

Translation: Protests against George W. Bush good; protests against Barack Hussein Obama bad.

I'm generally not the biggest media critic, mainly because we need the press as an institution. But articles like this do nothing to inform the public, and they only feed the anger and cynicism that's erupting at all of these town halls.

Hook's piece is also at the Los Angeles Times (via Memorandum).

See also, The Hill, "Parties cry foul over spate of homestate showdowns" (via Memeorandum).

Cornyn to Obama: Stop Compiling Political Enemies List

From U.S. Senator John Cornyn, "Sen. Cornyn Calls On White House To Immediately Stop Compiling Political Enemies List":

Dear President Obama,

I write to express my concern about a new White House program to monitor American citizens' speech opposing your health care policies, and to seek your assurances that this program is being carried out in a manner consistent with the First Amendment and America's tradition of free speech and public discourse.

Yesterday, in an official White House release entitled "Facts are Stubborn Things," the White House Director of New Media, Macon Phillips, asserted that there was "a lot of disinformation out there," and encouraged citizens to report "fishy" speech opposing your health care policies to the White House. Phillips specifically targeted private, unpublished, even casual speech, writing that "rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation." Phillips wrote "If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov."

I am not aware of any precedent for a President asking American citizens to report their fellow citizens to the White House for pure political speech that is deemed "fishy" or otherwise inimical to the White House's political interests.

By requesting that citizens send "fishy" emails to the White House, it is inevitable that the names, email addresses, IP addresses, and private speech of U.S. citizens will be reported to the White House. You should not be surprised that these actions taken by your White House staff raise the specter of a data collection program. As Congress debates health care reform and other critical policy matters, citizen engagement must not be chilled by fear of government monitoring the exercise of free speech rights.

I can only imagine the level of justifiable outrage had your predecessor asked Americans to forward emails critical of his policies to the White House. I suspect that you would have been leading the charge in condemning such a program-and I would have been at your side denouncing such heavy-handed government action.

So I urge you to cease this program immediately. At the very least, I request that you detail to Congress and the public the protocols that your White House is following to purge the names, email addresses, IP addresses, and identities of citizens who are reported to have engaged in "fishy" speech. And I respectfully request an answer to the following:

• How do you intend to use the names, email addresses, IP addresses, and identities of citizens who are reported to have engaged in "fishy" speech?
• How do you intend to notify citizens who have been reported for "fishy" speech?
  
• What action do you intend to take against citizens who have been reported for engaging in "fishy" speech?
  
• Do your own past statements qualify as "disinformation"? For example, is it "disinformation" to note that in 2003 you said:"I happen to be a proponent of a single-payer universal health care plan"?

I look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,

JOHN CORNYN

United States Senator

Also, see Michal Goldfarb, "Cornyn to Obama: Stop With the Enemies Lists" (via Memeorandum).

Image Credit: Atlas Shrugs.

The Definitive Case for How Freaking Scared the Left Is...

From Mary Katherine Ham, "Think Progress, MSNBC 'Manufacture' a Story With Putative Smoking Gun 'Mob' Memo":

When the "manufactured" outrage the Left is trying to demonize lines up so inconveniently with public polling, it's sometimes necessary to create evidence for the "manufactured" storyline.

Enter Think Progress, which unearthed this shocking, secret memo from the leader of a small grassroots conservative organization in Connecticut, which allegedly instructs members on "infiltrating town halls and harassing Democratic members of Congress."

Right Principles PAC was formed by Bob MacGuffie and four friends in 2008, and has taken in a whopping $5,017 and disbursed $1,777, according to its FEC filing.

"We're just trying to shake this state up and make a difference up here," MacGuffie told me during a telephone interview. He's surprised at his elevation to national rabble-rouser by the Left.

Right Principles has a Facebook group with 23 members and a Twitter account with five followers. MacGuffie describes himself as an "opponent of leftist thinking in America," and told me he's "never pulled a lever" for a Republican or Democrat on a federal level. Yet this Connecticut libertarian's influence over a national, orchestrated Republican health-care push-back is strong, indeed, if you listen to liberal pundits and the Democratic National Committee, who have crafted a nefarious web out of refutable evidence.

More at the link (via Memeorandum).

Also from Think Progress (some leftist fearmongering), "Freshman Democratic Lawmaker ‘Physically Assaulted at a Local Event’ by Activists."

Problem though ... There's no identifying information at Think Progress' key link. Daily Kos picks up the hoax, here. The diarist also can't come up with anything more than some obscure blog for "evidence." See, "Health Care Reform - Organized Mayhem at Town Hall Meetings."

And note this brilliance at This Week With Barack Obama:

This is riot antics given to you by the K Street lobbyists, who are feeding on a frenzy of a very small portion of the population

What has to happen next? Gun shots fired? Or someone seriously injured? GOP you down for these thug tactics? Again, no answer because they are leaderless.

Ah, wouldn't those leaders be the K Street lobbyists? Don't you need some kind of leadership to "manufacture" these events? Gee, Dems, get frightened much?

See also, John Fund, "When in Doubt, Attack Your Critics: ObamaCare Supporters Attack Opponents as “Angry Mobs of Rabid Right-Wing Extremists.”

The public doesn't seem all that freaked out:

Contrary to charges from Democrats that the recent spate of contentions [at] congressional town hall meetings are the result of “Astroturf” and “manufactured anger,” a new CNN poll finds a huge majority of Americans would likely attend such a meeting on the issue of health reform if one was held in their community.

Related: I watched this ABC broadcast with Charles Gibson last night, noted by Newsbusters: "ABC: Town Hall Wrath at ObamaCare 'Appears to Be Orchestrated'."

Added: From MyBarackObama.com, "Alhambra (Congressman Schiff Townhall) - On Healthcare Reform (Health Care Organizing Event)":

As many of you may know, insurance company money is bankrolling the busing in of “tea-bagging” right-wingers who do not live in our district in order to disrupt this town hall. Their goal is to create the impression for the media that this issue of healthcare reform (which includes at least a public government option for health insurance) is divisive and not supported by the majority of our district’s constituents. This is being done nationwide by the Republican Party and their partners, the Insurance Comanies lobby and Big Pharma.

We need to show up to counter this with our healthcare stories – real stories of human suffering that will shame these right-wing extremists. We also need to bring numbers so that there is no way the media can ignore where our district stands; we support healthcare reform based on President Barak Obama’s promises during his campaign.

This is one of my group's local events. The Dems better put up a big turnout, because the right is REALLY gearing up for this one. See, "Rep. Schiff presents: A Health Care Townhall!"

*********

UPDATE! Now it's about "death threats." See Talking Points Memo, "Dem Congressman's Office: His Life Has Been Threatened Over Health Care Bill."

Problem ... The article is sourced to "communications director LuAnn Canipe, in an interview with TPM." But checking the website for Representative Miller indicates no special announcements and the piece says the matter has been turned over to the "Capitol Police" in D.C. But a Google search turns up no corroborating reports, except for other progressive blogs ejaculating over another straw with which to smear conservatives.

Added: From Blue Crab Boulevard:

I’m calling Bull sh__ on this claim by a Democrat from North Carolina. Brad Miller from North Carolina is making media claims that he is canceling all of his town hall meetings - which he had none scheduled - because of supposed death threats ....

First of all - he had no town hall meetings scheduled - so what, exactly, is he canceling? Let’s face it, Propaganda Points Memo is not exactly a trustworthy source for anything resembling truth, but in this case, the claim is so egregious that it begs for confirmation.

Either produce a police report or stuff your report. This event, according to the report, was reported to the Capitol Police. Produce the report.

Exactly!