The first two videos showcase the experience Representative for the 8th Congressional District of Wisconsin Steve Kagen, M.D. encountered at an impassioned town hall meeting held at a local library in Brown County, Wisconsin. The location for the event clearly demonstrates how both the organizers and the congressman himself severely underestimated the level of animosity the average citizenry held toward the idea of the government taking over the health care industry.
The first video is a segment produced for a local FOX affiliate and mainly features quick interviews with individuals who attended the event:
The second video comes from Fox News’s On the Record with Greta Van Susteren. And while it is slightly shorter then the first video, it does a far better job, taking the time to highlight the rather intense exchanges attendees had with Rep. Kagen:
The town hall meeting was so intense that Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty likened the scene to “a Vikings-Packers game.”
The third video comes from a town hall meeting Representative for the 1st Congressional District of Oregon David Wu held back on July 1st in the town of Sherwood. Representing a district with a partisan voting index of D+8, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation probably felt that he wasn’t likely to encounter much resistance. Regardless of whether he was right or not in holding such assumptions, Rep. Wu did not do himself any favors in attempting to circumvent answering what to most would seem to be a simple: yes or no, do you read the bills you vote on?
As Northwest News reports, “Not only was Congressman Wu unusually evasive in his answer, he attempted to stoke the flames higher rather than making efforts aimed at de-escalating the situation. In doing so, Wu brought the wrath of those in the audience who disagreed with his vote on a particular bill, squarely down on his own head.”
Sadly, it has become an accepted reality of American political culture that congressmen do not read every single piece of legislation that is ultimately voted upon. It is nothing new. However, bills with as far reaching implications as Cap-and-Trade and the president’s health care reform plan have should be required reading. For congressmen to dodge a simple yes-or-no answer to questions addressing whether they read these critically important bills is unacceptable.
