From the folks on the Left who claim bullying is a huge social problem comes a nationwide effort to bully Republican lawmakers who hold in-person town hall meetings with their constituents.
A video documenting the bullying was posted with a story entitled “GOP representatives take a verbal beating at town halls across America” on the Think Progress website, a “media outlet” for the Center for American Progress (CAP), which along with moveon.org and Indivisible created townhallproject.com to instruct visitors on how to make signs, use “bird-dogging” tactics, and ask specific questions at the protests.
John Podesta, one of the architects of CAP, was campaign manager for the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign.
The video shows how Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Idaho) was mocked for telling the audience that the Republican’s American Health Care Act if it becomes law would not cause anyone to die.
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) stood by while the crowd chanted “You Work for Us” and “Vote Flake Out” over and over again.
In the video one man yells at Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-NJ), telling him “You have been the single greatest threat to my family in the entire world. You are the reason I stay up at night.”
The video doesn’t show how MacArthur was mocked by the crowd when he tried to explain the disabilities and death of his daughter, Gracie, at age 11 informed his position on health care.
The Think Progress video narrative says: “217 Republicans voted to pass the American Health Care Act” and “Only 14 held town halls.”
“Here’s what their constituents had to say,” the introduction states before it highlights the bullying at town halls.
“In New York, protesters outside Rep. Elise Stefanik’s (R-NY) live-taped town hall, which was broadcast on local channels, gathered and chanted “shame.”
“They carried signs depicting her as a grim reaper, and many demanded single-payer health care,” the Think Progress article states.
“In Iowa, Rep. Rod Blum (R-Iowa) faced hostile crowds in a series of town halls throughout the week,” the article states. “At the first, on Monday night, the crowd held up green and red pieces of paper to signal agreement or disagreement with his statements. There was a lot more red paper visible than green.”
Think Progress reports that Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) got special protest treatment because he, along with MacArthur, was an architect of an amendment that “got the bill across the finish line.”
The article implies that during these town halls GOP lawmakers “stretched the truth” about the healthcare bill and were “dismissive” of constituents questions, even if viewing the complete town hall videos shows lawmakers tried to answer questions but were drowned out by chants and shouting.
The Think Progress article concludes with a quote from a man waiting in line to attend the MacArthur town hall.
“And anything that happens to someone like me, or anyone else who can’t afford health care in this country, it is going to be his fault and the fault of every single Republican who voted for that bill,” Bob Finkelstein, who has multiple sclerosis, told Think Progress. “People are going to die.”
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