It’s been awhile since I’ve posted any entries, for which I apologize. Not only have I been out of town and busy, but my computer crashed and needed to be replaced. There’s been a heck of a lot going on lately, and I don’t even know where to start. How about with the now-infamous townhall meetings?

From GOPUSA.com:

Something amazing happens when Americans are pushed to the edge. There are legislators who try to pass bills for the benefit of a special interest group. Many seek out power and become corrupt, and not much is said. Yet, when the actions cross that invisible threshold, the American people say, “Enough is enough!”

We saw it with so-called “immigration reform,” when Congress and the president tried multiple times to pass amnesty only to have the American people speak out and say, “No!” Now, we have Obama and the left-wing Congress trying to transform America into something that it isn’t: a socialist nation, and the American people are fighting back. The townhall meetings have become a place were legislators fear to tread, and where “ordinary” Americans are starting to take their country back.

First, a quick video clip which sums up why Americans are so frustrated with left-wing elitists. Just look at how much Democrat Sheila Jackson Lee cares about the concerns of the American people:

These Democrats are starting to hear an earful at their townhall meetings, and the voices of the protestors are resonating all across the country. In a new Gallup Poll, sixty-nine percent of those surveyed say they are “closely following news accounts of town hall meetings on health care reform.” In addition, thirty-four percent of respondents say “the protests make them more sympathetic to the protestors’ viewpoints,” while only twenty-one percent say “the protests make them less sympathetic.”

In addition, a new Rasmussen poll shows that support for Congress’ health care plan has hit a new low.

Public support for the health care reform plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats has fallen to a new low as just 42% of U.S. voters now favor the plan. That’s down five points from two weeks ago and down eight points from six weeks ago.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that opposition to the plan has increased to 53%, up nine points since late June.

More significantly, 44% of voters strongly oppose the health care reform effort versus 26% who strongly favor it. Intensity has been stronger among opponents of the plan since the debate began.

As the Associated Press points out, “many of those raising their voices and fists at the town halls have never been politically active. Their frustration was born earlier this year with government bailouts and big spending bills, then found an outlet in the anti-tax Tea Parties in April and has simmered in the punishing recession.”

The protesters have several concerns, but a unifying emotion is distrust of the government and federal intrusion into individual liberties or personal choices.

The emerging protest movement is almost the mirror image of the grass-roots campaign that helped sweep Obama into office by pulling in people who’d never been politically active. This time Obama is seeing the other side of what can happen when people are motivated, connect over the Internet and seemingly reach a tipping point that turns them from onlookers into activists.

Funny how the only townhall meeting that appeared to go smoothly was the one Barack Obama recently held. It was full of cheer and softball questions. Democrats from around the country are facing real constituents who have had enough, and Obama can’t even face a real crowd. He has to hold staged events, which are so obviously fake that members of the media are even getting frustrated.

How are the actions of concerned Americans being addressed? Are the Democrats and Obama beginning to see the light? Of course not. Rather than listening to these voices, Obama and company simply ship in their own band of thugs to drown out the concerns of constituents. Liberal groups are even running ads to recruit “volunteers” (for $15/hr) to rescue Obama’s sinking ship.

According to a story in the LA Times, the group Fund for the Public Interest is running an ad on Craigslist under the headline “Work to Pass Obama’s Healthcare Plan and Get Paid to Do it! $10-15 hr!”

Despite what Obama and Democrats like Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid think, the American people aren’t ready for socialism. They are speaking out, and the Democrats are running for cover… turning townhall meetings into private conference calls or canceling them altogether. Let’s keep up the pressure, and show the liberal elite that America belongs to us… not them.

In response to all of these Americans expressing their first-amendment right or free speech, the Obama team is now cracking down on townhall meetings.

The efforts of Barack Obama and his advisers to intimidate and discredit Americans with opposing views continue to unfold. We have learned of Obama’s web site which calls for Americans to “rat out” their neighbors and anyone else who is spreading “fishy” information about Obama’s health care plan. We also learned how the Democrats are labeling protestors as part of an angry “mob.”

But there is more. During this August congressional recess, the Democrats will be making a full court press to rally support for Obama’s sagging health care plans, and they will take no prisoners in the process. Disagree with Obama on health care? If so, then your “phony” concerns might just get you on the White House “enemies” list. You may also face increased pressure at townhall meetings.

Obama and the Democrats have faced a wave of angry Americans, and clearly they were not prepared for the opposition. Apparently, they think everyone is just in love with them and their policies to transform America into a socialist state. Democrat legislators have clearly not been ready for their own townhall meetings where constituents voiced their anger and concern with the big spending, big government actions of Obama and Congress.

How has Obama and his team responded? Simple. First, they are trying to discredit the opposition. According to them, “good” Americans favor the health care takeover, while “bad” Americans do not. Second, there is intimidation. As I reported yesterday, the White House is actually building a database of those opposed to Obama’s plans, and they are encouraging Americans to report on other Americans. That is scary!

The strategy is now being stepped up. In a report in The Hill, “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called the protests ‘phony’ at a press conference he held earlier in the day, holding up a swatch of Astroturf to reporters to illustrate his point.” In addition, “Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said the groups connected to the health insurance industry have organized the protests in an effort to protect corporate profits from new government regulations.”

However, this strategy of discrediting the opposition that is favored by Obama and his team is very risky, and not all Democrats are buying into it. A few Democrat senators were quoted in the story as saying that at their townhall meetings they met strong people with strong opinions.

Still, Obama and congressional leaders are now doing EXACTLY what they are accusing the Republicans of doing: stacking townhall meetings with left-wing supporters. As noted in The Atlantic: “The Service Employees International Union says it’s working to turn out its members at town-halls in states where it has a presence, coordinating with members of Congress to orchestrate turnout. (I mentioned earlier that the AFL-CIO will be doing that with a new, targeted campaign.) SEIU was working on town-hall turnout already, along with the rallies and phone banks it has planned across the country for recess, but conservative protests have led to a greater focus on ramping up town-hall presence specifically, in addition to the rest of the program.”

In a post on CNN, the author notes that “liberal groups are sending supporters detailed instructions on strategies to counter what they call organized disruptions of congressional town halls — events that have become new front lines in the fight over President Obama’s health care proposal.”

So, Obama and the Democrats accuse concerned citizens of being part of some right-wing effort to create an “angry mob,” yet they are doing the same thing. The report continues:

OFA (Organizing for America) sent its e-mail list a message Thursday that pointed to the protests as a fresh hurdle that called for a concerted push to contact members of Congress in response. “The goal of these disruptions is for a few people to get a lot a media attention and hijack the entire public discourse,” wrote executive director Mitch Stewart. The message identifies the lawmaker who represents the specific congressional district of the e-mail recipient, and provides contact information.

A new campaign by the group also asks supporters to make their presence felt at town hall meetings. “Our congressional representatives are back home this month, and they’re facing more and more pressure from special interests on health insurance reform. It’s critical that we get out there and show them where we stand,” says an OFA e-mail.

HCAN – the massive umbrella organization that represents the lobbying effort on behalf of major progressive groups and unions like MoveOn, the NAACP, and the SEIU – has given its supporters instructions on their own set of defensive town hall tactics.

The group advises them to coordinate event-day strategy in advance with congressional aides; arrive far earlier than opponents and gather “in the front to create a wall around the Member”; and to assign individuals to shadow reporters and “be assertive in shaping the narrative.” It provides suggested questions and possible chants to use in drowning out raucous opponents.

In the following video from a townhall meeting in St. Louis, members of SEIU are being allowed into the meeting, while others are not.

As Rep. Mike Pence notes, more people are showing up at townhall meetings because they know what Obama has in store for them.

The key for conservatives is to continue to show up at townhall meetings and make our opinions known. We must also do so in a way that shows that our opposition is sincere and well constructed. Bring video cameras and document efforts by groups which try to shut the door on conservatives.

More people are opposed to Obama’s health care plan than support it. We must keep up the pressure! If Obama and the Democrats have to organize the unions and groups like ACORN in order to stifle the voices of concerned Americans, then so be it. There are more of us, and now we are speaking out.

Related posts:

1. Townhall.com Staff: It’s On: Health Care Reform is Going to SCOTUS
2. Townhall.com Staff: Walkout: US Delegation Ditches Ahmadinejad’s UN Rant
3. Michael Medved: A "Warrior for the Middle Class"?