At the Lexington Town Hall meeting instead of showing the President’s plan they showed the GOP plan (chart included).
At the Lexington Hall Meeting there was majority Republicans of course, and a few Democrats. There was a share of outbursts here and there.
I sat up front and got to ask the people around me their opinion on Health Care. Some were unsure about it. Dr. John Black, the President, SC Medical Assoc. Said the? Doctor association (don’t remember the name) was supporting the President’s Plan, because of duress. Rep. Joe Wilson also echoed that other groups were under duress, to support the plan. What I find so interesting about Dr. Black everything he would support in a Bill in Health Care Reform is already in the President’s plan. The folks love it, but they didn’t understand that this is part of the President’s Plan not the GOP.
Rep. Joe Wilson continuously spread some of the same falsehoods Republicans have been spreading in emails. He said that Abortion is mention through out this bill, which is False. He talked about the so called death panel and how the illegal aliens would take advantage of the Presidents plans. Some Democrats were fed up of the falsehoods and would shout out liar. Any information in reference to the President’s Health Care Reform Joe Wilson talked about has been proven false by the Media and the White House. Questions were put on post cards and drawn from a box. All the questions we heard were from Republicans. (Not to add there were several duplicate questions on the Post cards which was a waste of time.) I guess they were afraid of the questions if people got up to use a microphone.
There was one short elder lady that kept interrupting and calling Joe Wilson a liar with some shouts about Iraq. She kept getting reprimanded by the man reading the Questions on stage. At one point Joe Wilson directly reprimanded her for her out bursts (something about comparing to a chair and table). People were yelling at her to leave. After it was almost over she got up to leave and Republicans were roaring and clapping. As she was leaving and Joe Wilson was speaking she yelled something and another elder man went over and looked like touch her arm (? I guess to take her out). The elder gentlemen she was with stood in front of her and stared the other elderly man down.
After the meeting I went over to Speak to Rep. Wilson to ask a question. There were several people trying to ask questions and I was directly standing beside Rep. Wilson and every time I tried to get in to ask a question he seem to keep to turning around in the circle to answer someone else’s question. Not to say this figured into the picture, but I was probably suspected as a supporter for the President since I am African American, and I was the only African I noticed in the crowd trying to ask Rep. Joe Wilson a question after the meeting. There were some people who kept mentioning after the last person had finish with their question, I was trying to ask a question. (He seem to keep turning in a circle in the other direction to answers someone else’s question, mind you again I was directly next to him). The agent? I assume who was with Rep. Wilson said he would make sure I would get to speak to Rep. Wilson.
I ask Rep. Wilson How can he explain for Canada, who he said has everyone on a 6 months waiting list, can some how be able to provide health care since 2007 for any American unemployed or simply cannot afford insurance in the United States to come there to gain health care for a small fee? How can he justify the United States can’t take care of his own? He gave be a blip answer, we can’t afford it, and tried to turn away.
I then said the President’s Public option was not free and that people would have to pay for it. The plan also help covers the gap for those that can’t pay for private insurance.
He also later said each country should take care of its own. Mind you Joe Wilson is not interested in providing insurance option such as a public plan so how could he say the United States will take care of its own? The folks chimed in…
He tried to mention the Trillion dollars the President’s health care program would cost and I said I understood it to be in the billions.
He tried to mention all the illegal aliens that have been driving up the cost, (when he mentions illegal aliens everyone began yelling about the illegal aliens. I had one woman pointing at me and screaming. I looked at her and looked away. I told him of all the millions Americans who drive up cost by using the emergency rooms to get medical attention.
He then mention all the small businessmen that would go out of business and all the people with private insurance would be removed from their personal insurance plan and I explained a public plan would be good for the small businessmen that could not afford providing insurance to their employees. Employees would be able to buy affordable insurance on their own, and people with private insurance would still be able to keep their insurance.
He kept trying to make people fear government involved in health care throughout the town hall meeting and when I was talking to him, I also ask him if he is going to ask all these folks around him to get off Medicare since Medicare is ran by the government. I then ask him does he support Medicare and he did say yes.
There was another woman next to me who kept yelling I was wrong about the small businessmen not going out of business. She said she would explain it to me, and I looked at her and told her I didn’t want to hear from her because anything she had to say would be biased. Rep. Joe Wilson looked over his shoulder and smiled at her. (I had overheard earlier this same woman talking to one of Joe’s Wilson’s people. Apparently she and Rep. Wilson have talked before and also I overheard her tell she works for the Insurance Industry).
We had some other comments back and forth but that’s about the gist of it.
I had all the questions I could think of and so I left. On my way out small businessmen shook my hand and told me he actually understood the questions I asked Rep. Joe Wilson. He thought the President plans was a good plan, but was concerned about some of the penalties (some more of the Falsehoods Joe Wilson put out there at this Town Hall meeting).
Actually I believe majority of those people in that room would support a Public choice, but the Republicans are making it sound bad. One lady told Joe she was mad and she was afraid that the government was going to take her Medicare. Do you think Joe Wilson told her she shouldn’t worry about that in the President’s plan? NO, he didn’t tell her she was wrong, he overlooked this and referenced what he would not support this bill. One gentleman told Joe Wilson that he hopes he can put out more information about the Health Care Reform bill, because he just didn’t have enough information about it. C’mon he isn’t going to get the correct information from Representative Republican Joe Wilson.
Well that’s my long story, and my last Town Hall meeting on Health Care, so my mom can stop worrying.
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