Last week, after Missouri Congressman Sam Graves held a health-care town-hall meeting at Park Hill High School, KMBC Channel 9 reported that the debate had taken a "new turn." Reporter Jim Flink noted that Graves' crowd was "friendly" (to the Republican) and "partisan," but also suggested that there had been "a shift in strategy." The night's focus, he said, was "less on the fear and the frustration over the plan and more focusing on the fix -- fixing what's wrong with the current system."
I beg to differ with Flink's assessment of the night.
Granted, Graves does favor some insurance reforms (it should be portable if people lose their jobs; people shouldn't be denied for pre-existing conditions). And granted, no pro-reform disrupters showed up to give conservatives a taste of their own medicine, so the event was relatively calm (i.e., not filled with great TV moments).
But if anything, this was an anti-government rally hosted by a sitting congressman.
At one point Graves told his audience: "I have yet to see a program that the government runs well."
The line earned a loud round of applause, making it obvious that this type of crowd doesn't just favor small government -- this crowd is happy when it hears an elected official complain that government doesn't work at all.
Graves might have been working this crowd -- with full confidence that no one would accuse him of being a hypocrite. See, there are some government programs that Sam Graves likes.
In mid-August, Graves was happy to announce
that the U.S. Department of Agriculture had approved nearly $4 million in loans and grants for Carrollton,
a
town in Graves' district where the wastewater treatment system needs
some improvements. The USDA's Rural Development program, Graves noted in his press release, had a mission "to increase economic
opportunity and improve the quality of life for rural residents. Rural
Development fosters growth in homeownership, finances business
development, and supports creation of critical community and technology
infrastructure."
He was also eager to announce his support for re-authorization of the federal Rural Education and Achievement Program (part of No Child Left Behind), which helps rural schools apply for federal grants. Between 2004 and 2008, the program funneled more than $848 million to 5,000 rural districts nationwide. According to Graves, "Programs like REAP ensure that all students have the same opportunities to succeed in life."
These would be examples of government programs that work, but Graves didn't dare mention that in front of these folks. Instead, he goaded them on.
"I don't want somebody in Washington making the
decision on my mother, going through cancer treatments, on whether
she's productive enough, or not productive enough, or old enough or
young enough or whatever the case may be," he said, again earning applause. (No mention of whether his mom's on Medicare.)
Early on, a man in the back contributed this:
"Everything that I've seen coming out of this administration, basically,
is anti-capitalistic." The man then suggested that everyone Obama has "brought into his
administration is a known communist." So his question was, "What are we going to do as Republicans to join force and fight all this stuff that the Democrats
are doing? They have the SEIU. They have all the other people that sponsor
their leftist movement. What can the Republican Party do, what can we
do as a community, to start fighting against this and start organizing
like ACORN and everybody else?"
Graves might have taken the opportunity to thank conservative talk-radio host Chris Stigall for acting as the evening's master of ceremonies, and remind the crowd that they could always tune in to Fox News for talking points and organizing instructions. Graves missed that opportunity, choosing instead to agree with his questioner. "The unfortunate
thing is Republicans, we don't do nearly as good a job getting active -- "
"We work for a living!" someone in the audience yelled, to laughter and applause.
Graves
laughed too. "I didn't say that." He said the Democrats were overreaching and he was confident that the pendulum would swing back to the right. "I'm pretty optimistic about it. We have to keep
the momentum going."
Later, another questioner wondered why Washington lawmakers weren't making more out of the fact that HR 3200, the main health-care reform bill in the House, "violates my right to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and possibly the 10th Amendment of
the Bill of Rights?"
Graves: "The bigger question is what
constitutional authority does the government have to take over our
health care?" (Big applause and hollers.)
(Apparently, the pre-amble's promise
that the Constitution intends to "promote the general welfare, and
secure the blessings of liberty" applies to sewage treatment plants and
rural school kids, but not the tens of millions of Americans who don't
already have health insurance.)
Graves thrilled the crowd when he said that the health-care vote would be "a career-changing vote" for everyone in Congress. "Make sure they [elected officials] know that, spell it straight out for
them. Here's the thing, too, you gotta remember: If they don't get this
stuff done when we come back in September or October or November, it ain't
gonna get done. Not next year -- next year's an election year!"
That's right, folks. Just fight off a vote until January, and we'll have won! We will have successfully avoided solving the most critical moral and economic problem of our time!
The evening's climactic moment came toward the end, when a woman stood up to say that she had postponed the celebration of her wedding anniversary to be there. She told the crowd she'd brought petitions from grassfire.org that had "thousands upon
thousands of Missouri signatures on them, so that you can take them
back to Congress and show them that Missouri is mad as hell, and we're
not going to take it anymore!" Wild applause!
Graves grinned at her.
"We want the folks to get
involved," she continued. "There are conservative Web sites out there, and you can make a
difference. We are making a difference right now. We are getting our
troops together. We're organizing our states. Our state has directors. And we're heading to Washington next month, September 10-12. We're
many organizations are joining together that this is going to be the biggest march
of conservatives that Washington, D.C., has ever seen!"
It was getting harder to hear her because of all the applause. "We're going to hand out pink
slips to all of those who are going against our Constitution! We are
united in our effort and we are there behind you and we are focusing on
all of the candidates that we're going to be replacing in all of the
states. And we are looking at people who are standing there and saying,
'Wait a minute, I am not a liberal, and I believe in morality, and I
believe in God and country and I'm gonna get this country back!"
Yep, the eight-month-old Obama
administration has stolen the country.
And there isn't one government program that's run well. Let's just not mention the fact that Graves has been among those in charge since he was elected to Congress in 2000.
Showing 1-14 of 14
Rep. Graves, I just want to thank you for your stand on the health care bill. I am a 70 year old male who has had a number of serious health problems in the last 10 years, and as far as I can see if this health care fiasco were to become law it would be a cold day in Hell before I could count on any serious care in the future. I, and all my friends are behind you in your opposition.
PLEASE LEARN TO SPELL
CLIMATIC DESCRIBES THE WEATHER .
CLIMACTIC IS THE CORRECT WORD .
CJ Anchovy is a leftist America-hating marxist idiot, who won't like the country left to her by Hussein and Van, when snivelers like her roll over and find their freedom GONE.
God Bless Americans, and condemn Alinsky disciples like CJ Anchovy and Hussein the Long Legged Mack Daddy.
Whatever one's feelings on Sam Graves, this story is so clearly and irrefutably biased as to be absurd.
First, it's been shown that out of the "tens of millions of uninsured" there are actually only about five million U.S. citizens with a legitimate and complete lack of coverage who are not merely abstaining from buying a policy despite ability to pay. This is unfortunate but does not require socializing the entire medical industry to remedy. This is merely a "throw it against the wall and pour money in" approach as a solution.
Furthermore, most Americans who are covered are mostly satisfied with the care they receive. Why the rush to overhaul? Hidden agenda, do you think?
Most importantly, the very reason we have not fallen into total socialist totalitarianism to date is our Constitution, an imperfect yet unprecedented legal doctrine around which the modern world has developed and prospered. The "general welfare" clause didn't mean that generally, people should be on welfare. If the powers given the government were infinite the founders would not have enumerated them.
James Madison, "The Father of the Constitution" wrote:
"If Congress can employ money indefinitely to the general welfare, and are the sole and supreme judges of the general welfare, they may take the care of religion into their own hands; they may appoint teachers in every State, county and parish and pay them out of their public treasury; they may take into their own hands the education of children,
establishing in like manner schools throughout the Union; they may assume the provision of the poor; they may undertake the regulation of all roads other than post-roads; in short, every thing, from the highest object of state legislation down to the most minute object of police, would be thrown under the power of Congress.... Were the power of Congress to be established in the latitude contended for, it would subvert the very foundations, and transmute the very nature of the limited Government established by the people of America."
It sounds very much like the ways in which we have strayed as a country from the actual intention of our founders are the ways in which we have gone astray from the principles of liberty and self-sufficiency and the causes of our most pressing turmoils and fiscal ills. Socialism is not the answer; it is the question. NO! is the resounding answer, should we endeavor to preserve one sliver of the great Constitutional Republic we've inherited.
I love that these wingers think everybody else's "bias" is somehow wrong or immoral. Listen to your own biases!
See, there are some government programs that Sam Graves likes
Hell, there are some government-run health care programs that Sam Graves likes. The one that covers him as a Congressman, for example. He just doesn't want you thinking you're good enough to rate the same.
As for you conservatives, fuck you. Nobody cares what you think any more.
And another Pitch writer shows the world a leftist bias.. again.
Why am I not surprised?
Jeanne- You said it. Nicely done. It might help if a few other people who claim to have read the Constitution actually would.
Hypocritical much?
Many libs never even accepted that Bush was the actual President yet they now that the shoe is on the other foot they want to complain about dissenters being unAmerican.
It was hysterically funny when Bush was made out to be Alfred E. Neuman yet it's virtually treason when someone photoshops Obama to be The Joker.
By the way - have you actually READ the General Welface clause of the Constitution? "The Congress shall have Power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States."
In other words, Congress can spend money for the general welfare. It was not empowered to legislate for the general welfare. That is where the 10th amendment that you socialists find so inconvenient comes into play.
At some point O has to get over blameing Bush and take resposibility as the Current President. If I take a job as the top dog so to speak where does the buck stop? Clue, with me. It matters not what the previous person did, it is now my position. That makes it my responsibility and I do not shirk my duty or place blame, I deal with problems and solve them as they arise. Pointing fingers only shows he cant take the stress of the position. No one forced him to take the job, perhaps he should step down. It is not possible for me to have less respect for the man, I can spot a fake and a liar a mile away. I do respect the position he holds, just not the man or his politics.
Government code, regulation, and law does not= liberty. If you have read the Bill of Rights as understood by the masses they were about personal liberty, rights, that could not be taken from you. If you disagree, fine. However, Congress for the most part sides to that as well as the supreme court. That is my opinion also as meant and understood at the time by the founders. Disagree all you want, but you will not force your agenda on me without resistance. I do not want your "free" health care program and I am not a rich person, I pay my way. Regulation eliminates choices that should rightly be my own, not forced by the government thru mandate, code, law, or regulation. I am proud of my heritage and the freedom that was intended for us all which many people no longer value. Many will justify the takeing of liberty of others in many ways, it always comes to control. Leave me alone, I care not to enter into nor do I desire your protection. Millions feel the same and now it shows in the recent activity of conservative americans. Thank you.
The Bush years showesd what happens when you put government in the hands of people who already think it can't work.
Thanks for the update. I was curious how these things were going on the Republican side.
I've said this before, but I wish people would read the Constitution before trying to tell everyone what's in it.
I also wish people would read what's being proposed so they would stop talking about death panels and state-funded abortions and talk about the actual effing proposal.
I'm not holding my breath.
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