Town Hall Meetings Draw Thousands

September 3, 2009 (LPAC)—On Tuesday Lyndon LaRouche said what is significant in the mass strike is not the events, but the fact that the Obama administration is breaking down psychologically and is incapable of handling the reality of the situation they face; the events are significant, but they are a continuation and an escalation. Below are reports from the beginning of the week of the ongoing popular upheaval across the country against the President and his supporters in the Congress:

* Jim McDermott (D-WA) faced 600 people at the University of Washington, and most attendees appeared to be supportive of reform, although there were a few pointed questions about whether or not Congress would support a public option and if the plan could be paid for. In response to one question, McDermott admitted that the insurance companies have influence but claimed that opposition forces who ranted about "death panels" and painted a Hitler moustache on Obama's picture are "losing steam." [SeattlePI]

* Nick Rahall (D-WV) meeting in Glen Jean with 300 people was clouded by "rancor" for 3 hours. Rahall claimed that the Obama Administration is not trying to "eliminate" the elderly with death panels. The bill, instead, "merely" allows seniors to get end-of-life counseling. [register-herald.com]

* Tom Latham (R-IA) stoked opposition to the reform bill in a meeting with 150 people in Algona. Among other things, he told the audience that Iowans "rightfully should be concerned" about the role of Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel as a top advisor to Obama as someone "who has spoken and written about where the emphasis should be, as far as giving treatment somewhat equating that to the investment society has in those individuals or what their life expectancy is." [Des Moines Register]

* Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) meeting in Cincinnati came close to veering out of control despite the fact that supporters of reform easily outnumber the opponents among the 800 people who showed up for the meeting. [Cleveland Plain Dealer]

* Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) held two meetings, a morning meeting in Green Valley which drew over 600, but left about 100 of them outside the hall, and an evening meeting in Tucson which drew 2,200. The evening meeting was reported to be especially boisterous and "anger at the Obama Administration was palpable." [Arizona Daily Star]

* Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) addressed more than 700 people in Marquette which is actually in the district of Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) who has not held any town hall meetings. Afterwards, Stupak announced that he would hold a phone-in meeting on Wednesday. [uppermichiganssource.com]

* Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) meeting at the Community College of Allegheny County, with 175 people, never approached the vituperation of the meetings held by Arlen Specter, but nonetheless, as the meeting wore on, opponents of reform seemed to gain the upper hand. [post-gazette.com]

* Lynn Jenkins (R-KN) spoke to 150 people at the Robert J. Dole Institute in Lawrence, about half of whom were supportive of her opposition to the Obama reform. She said the size of the crowd was about average for what she's seen in meetings across her district. [kansan.com]

* Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) held the first of a series of meetings, yesterday, before "several hundred people" in Bend, which expressed a diversity of opinions. Merkley expressed support for the "federal marketplace" provision of the bill and for a public option. [statesjournal.com, ktvz.com]

* Dennis Moore (D-KN) cancelled a meeting scheduled for Overland Park because over 1,000 people RSVP'd for the event. They said it was because the meeting was not a town hall meeting and it had grown too large for the venue. Some people had shown up anyway and were quite angry about the cancellation. [fox4kc.com]

* Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-PA) is avoiding large crowds by not announcing his public meetings ahead of time. A meeting he held on Monday organized by the Pennridge and Upper Bucks chambers of commerce attracted only 10 people who were not chamber members, and a Tuesday meeting had only 20 people. [phillyburbs.com]