Yes, Republicans Are Having Town Hall Meetings Too-- And They Don't Want Democrats Showing Up To Talk About Health Care

Mocksville, North Carolina

In the last couple of days you've probably read or heard about at least a few congressional townhall meetings to discuss health care reform that were disrupted by Republican and corporate thugs (dittohead dupes in tow) with a vested interest in stopping the debate and stopping the exposure of all their health care lies. (Yesterday, for example, Wisconsin progressive Democratic congressman Dr. Steve Kagen was ambushed by a district Republican Party head who swore to NBC-News she wasn't a Republican, "just a mom" from down the street.)

With corporate media outlet BusinessWeek crowing that the health insurers have already won, members of Congress have been calling meetings with there constituents all over the country. Sure, John Boehner is off golfing overseas and Eric Cantor is leading around a gaggle of Republicans through the Holy Land, but many Republicans, as well as Democrats, are meeting with voters in their districts. Today Noah let us know about an instance in Mocksville, North Carolina where crazy, reactionary Virginia Foxx staged a "listening session." A dedicated group of Democrats from Davie, Ashe and Forsyth Counties in this deep red region went to take part and reported about it in a compelling photo essay at Democratic Underground.

We followed up with Myra Grozinger, the North Carolinian who put the photo essay together. She told us what happened in a way that made it sound like they had entered alien territory when they went to take part in the discusion.

They were overwhelmed, scared of a few old people and some kids, basically uninformed small town people who happened to have the power of cops. They went to great lengths to find ways to revoke the permit we had to gather, and were creative in doing so to the point of making up rules as they went.

This is Mocksville, NC... Davie county-- hotbed of Republicanism, many living in gorgeous old antebellum houses. They are like rocks, only dumber.

There is a large piece of property, many acres, fenced, and it belongs to the Masons. There they were holding their Masonic lunch and had invited Mrs. Virginia Foxx to speak. Since it was private property, the police couldn't keep us out; we were orderly, well behaved, happy people-- no threat to anyone.

These are people whose minds are set in concrete, and we can't change them; let's work on the country collectively so idiots like Virginia Foxx don't keep getting into office. We have to work on the children. It's too late for the adults we saw today.

I hope there were plenty of children watching last night as Rachel Maddow effortlessly took apart one of the worst and most duplicitous of the Big Business astro-turf shills, Republican lobbyist Tim "I'm not a lobbyist" Phillips: