Organizing for America | Posts with the tag town hall

Posts with the tag town hall

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By Madama Ambi - Sep 8th, 2009 at 1:47 pm EDT

Also listed in: 10 groups

I made this video during the campaign and I think it still has relevance, maybe even more so right now during our country's crisis of trust.

What do you think?

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Calm prevails at Meek's town hall

By Dave Patlak - Sep 4th, 2009 at 4:45 am EDT

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Calm prevails at Meek's town hall http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/story/1216851.html MiamiHerald.com - Beth Reinhard US Rep. Kendrick Meek emphasized the importance of a government-run healthcare plan at a low-key Miami town hall meeting attended by about 400 people. ...
No bullhorns, no protesters at Meek's town hallhttp://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2009/09/no-bullhorns-no-protesters-at-meeks-town-hall-.html
Meek Holds Health Care Town Hall - Politics News Story - WPLG MiamiSep 3, 2009 ... Kendrick Meek is holding a health care town hall meeting Thursday ... www.justnews.com/politics/20708651/detail.html Video: http://www.justnews.com/video/20718160/

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MAXINE WATERS HELD A HEATLH CARE REFORM TOWN HALL - AND MAJOR MEDIA DIDN’T COME

By Susan S. Davis - Aug 22nd, 2009 at 8:40 pm EDT

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I just attended a town hall meeting on health care reform today that Ms. Waters was gracious enough to hold today at the Los Angeles Southwest College at The Little Theater. The meeting was filled beyond capacity and people were actually turned away.

The meeting was very informative and I was shocked to see no major media outlet cameras covering the event. From what I could tell, the only coverage appeared to be a few photographers snapping some photos, and a Spanish translator for radio, as well as someone from an Asian station.

It is hard to imagine that CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC or even FOX News, for that matter, weren’t invited to cover a town hall meeting with Congressman Waters - about health care reform, which affects every U.S. citizen.

Just as cameras are rolling to catch all the irate opposers to a national health care system in the U.S., major media outlets should also be documenting the massive numbers of concerned citizens who are gathering to support it.

It is shameful that a public servant such as Congresswoman Maxine Waters and her esteemed panel did not merit the same level of press coverage that her opposition seems to garner so easily.

Since we are continually barraged with coverage of the opposition’s town hall meetings, I feel it is very important to speak out about this. It is the media’s responsibility to cover all sides of this very important health reform issue.

Health care reform will affect us all and major events should be covered by every major and local TV, cable, radio and Internet news outlet.

As concerned citizens, we need to express ourselves and make our voices heard. We need to let local and major media outlets know that it is unacceptable to ignore an event such as this. Read More »

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Positive Lessons Learned from Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff’s Healthcare Reform Town Hall on Tuesday 8/11/2009

By Michael from Santa Monica, CA - Aug 21st, 2009 at 1:03 am EDT

Also listed in: 10 groups

Please help me figure out how to get this to those that are preparing for future events...

Positive Lessons Learned from
Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff’s Healthcare Reform Town Hall
on Tuesday 8/11/2009

On Tuesday 8/11/2009, I attended a very well run Town Hall event that provided some very clear lessons on how to overcome the organized attempts at disruption and fear/hate mongering led by the radical right and corporate anti-reform supporters.

My thanks and congratulations go to Congressman Schiff and everyone involved in this event. This is the first such event that I have attended, and it was a very positive experience overall. (I was drawn to attend in an attempt to balance out the rowdy anti-reform crowds that I have seen on TV trying to dominate such events.)

The event had at least the expected 2000 people present, and despite the vocal attempts of anti-reform people, the event was kept relatively civilized and constructive.

A large part of this success is due to the obvious efforts of the event organizers to actively manage the event, rather than utilize a normal town hall format, which the anti-reform sponsors have recently managed so well to game to their advantage.

Below I list my observations, which I highly recommend that all Democratic legislators and town hall event planners study before/while planning their own events to discuss healthcare reform.

I also recommend that you contact Congressman Schiff, the event planners at his office and the City of Alhambra, the moderator Dr. Bruce Hensel, and the Alhambra Police Department for their own lessons learned.

Things done right to support a constructive dialog:

Don’t assume that this will be a normal town hall event. Treat this as a unique event with its own necessary preparation steps to ensure success.
The anti-reform sponsors have worked hard to game the format employed by normal town hall gatherings. Do not reward their efforts by passively playing along.
Be very clear on the goals of anti-reform sponsors…

· To agitate the radical right

· To prevent constructive dialog on this topic by disrupting and monopolizing the event

· To limit opportunities for reform supporters to spread their message

· To propagate intentional lies about reform goals/methods

· To intimidate supporters of healthcare reform from participating

· To wear down and intimidate pro-reform legislators

Do not limit attendance.
Attendance limits reward organizers who can bus in their supporters early during working hours so as to claim all available seats. Limits thus penalize people with jobs who find that by the time they can arrive after work and traffic the event is filled and they will not be admitted.
Hold the event outdoors.
This reduces the impact of people shouting to disrupt the event. During the first half of our event a number of anti-reformers attempted to shout non-stop to reduce dialog, but the open air dispersed their volume. They could not effectively compete with the sound system used by the podium speakers, and eventually they gave up and shut up.
An outdoor venue also supports the ability to avoid attendance limits.
Our event was held at a grassy area outside the library at the City of Alhambra Town Hall.
Use a high-quality sound system for the podium speakers.
The sound must be loud enough to be clearly heard by all in the audience, without distortion. Use a professional company for this and test it in advance.
Allow signs
Pro-reform audience members were obviously more polite and less likely to resort to out-shouting their opponents. Signs provided an alternative means for them to make their opinions known.
There will be many crazy signs from the anti-reform movement, such as pictures of Obama with a Hitler mustache. This is acceptable vs. the benefit of providing more civilized members of the audience with a means to communicate.
Use a professional moderator who is knowledgeable about healthcare reform.
Dr. Bruce Hensel, Medical, Health, and Science Editor/Reporter for NBC4 performed this role very admirably at Adam Schiff’s event. I recommend that organizers of similar events contact him to learn his own lessons learned.
The moderator should feel free to guide the discussion with the goal of providing constructive dialog.
Do not provide microphones for audience speakers, have the moderator restate their questions for the audience.
This reduces both the incentive for and impact of grandstanding and attempts to disrupt.
Not hearing amplified ranting also discourages other members of the audience from piling on with more shouting/chanting in an attempt to disrupt/monopolize the event.
It also allows legitimate, but nervous/awkwardly phrased questions to be restated in a manner that supports better dialog.
Have audience members line up to approach the front to ask questions
This is necessary for them to be heard by the moderator and legislator, since they will not be issued microphones. It also allows the moderator to more clearly call on people to come forward and speak.
At our event there was a pseudo line which formed as people moved forward to reach the front where they might be called on. This provided a cooling off period where people are required to behave in a civilized manner before speaking. Make sure that latecomers to the event are able to join the line as well as people that camp it before hand.
Using a line does not mean that the next person to speak is predetermined. At our event the line was a few people wide, and the moderator retained the right select the next speaker. This helps him/her try to balance the questions based on impressions of which side people may support, and to avoid calling on obviously disruptive people.
(I was able to move through the crowd, line up and eventually ask a question, even though by the time I arrived the event was just starting with over 2000 people present.)
Have sufficient room at the front for the selected speaker to step forward away from the line and speak.
Having the person separate themselves from the line makes it more clear who is to speak. It also reduces any potential intimidation from other people in line.
At our event a little girl was able to step up and ask a question without feeling intimidated.
Use a panel format
This allows the moderator to select appropriate experts to speak, and perhaps more importantly will avoid having the legislator get trapped in a cycle of having to continuously defend him/her self. The legislator remains free to speak up as desired though. It also supports the impression that the legislator is not the only person supporting reform.
Do not feel that the panel needs to be overly balanced so as to include people that do not support healthcare reform. The goal should be to support discussion of what type of reform, rather than having panelists attack the very concept.
Panelists should be warned though that due to the contentious nature of the anti-reformers, there may be limited opportunities to have a real debate, and much of the time may be spent simply defending the concept of healthcare reform.
Give the panelists a few minutes each at the beginning to state their positions once they are introduced.
At our event, the panelists were…

· Dr. Benjamin Chu, President, Southern California Region, Kaiser

· Dr. Richard Brown, Director, UCLA Center for Health Policy Research

· Jerry Flanagan, Health Care Advocate, Consumer Watchdog

· Leeba Lessin, President, CareMore Health Plan

Have a visible, but not overbearing, police presence for crowd control, especially near the front.
The Alhambra Police Department is to be commended for very successful crowd control which helped to protect the panelists and audience, as well as the spirit of the event itself. Their firm, but restrained guidance should be seen as a model of police support for civilized debate in a democracy. They were visible, but not at all overbearing. This helped lead to an almost carnival atmosphere where people were confident of their safety, without feeling intimidated by the government.
The 3-4 police between the audience and the podium helped ensure that the “line” of people moving forward to ask questions remained civilized. At one point they were required to step in and handle a minor disruption, but this in no way detracted from the event as it was handled firmly, but with restraint. Once I asked my question, an officer politely, but firmly asked me to step back if I was done with my question. I happily thanked him for his efforts and rejoined the crowd.
Perhaps most importantly, keep a sense of humor, and don’t allow yourself to be intimidated
Congressman Schiff was very good at this, including occasionally joking in a friendly manner with the crowd about their “passionate debate”. He began the event by specifically asking everyone to act in a positive manner, which also helped. He also clearly stated that he was not going to be able to please everyone, while making visible attempts address anti-reform questions. A very impressive balancing act during a challenging event in my opinion.

Potential improvements:
A few minor points might be improved upon…

When asking how many people in the audience are for or against healthcare reform, know that the second side asked will typically be louder than the first.
This is because they have time to prepare themselves, and have the ability to gauge how load they are willing to shout to surpass the first asked side. If you want to even out the chance for the more polite pro-reform side to present their numbers, I recommend that you ask first how many oppose healthcare reform, and then how many support it. At our event, the Congressman’s final question of how many people were undecided produced a predictable, but humorous response of only a handful of people.
Have the front area specifically reserved for people in line to ask questions,
Allowing people to remain in the front area allows more aggressive anti-reformers to crowd the more valuable positions towards the front where they can more effectively disrupt and intimidate.
At our event the crowd was allowed to be a little too close to the podium, which allowed a small mob of anti-reform shouters to have more than their fair share of influence.
Have police expel people that obviously attempt to disrupt the event
As mentioned above, at least one person as able to stand near the front and shout at the top of his lungs non-stop for about half the event.
Obviously the desire to address this has to be balanced with any potential for actual or perceived police intimidation. As stated, at our event, the open air venue and excellent sound system used by the podium speakers eventually caused this person to quit yelling, so perhaps this is not always necessary.
Try not to call on any one panelist too frequently
Mixing it up keeps all panelists involved and reduces the impression that any “pet-panelist” is being given too much attention.
Set the crowd’s expectations by clearly stating that there will be a period of at least ½ hour for the legislator and panelists to introduce themselves and give their positions before questions will be taken from the audience.
This will help control the anti-reformers’ desire to go straight to questions so that they can dominate the event. (It obviously won’t reduce their desire for this, but it will make their chants for questions to begin sound more rude, which will encourage the rest of the audience to discourage them.)
Possibly use a lottery to decide who is initially allowed to be up front for questions.
Assuming that the lottery is held immediately before the event, instead of well in advance, this would keep people from being able to camp the front.
The challenge here would be to come up with a method that would allow this to be done quickly and fairly, so it doesn’t become a distraction.

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Disappointed in President Obama's Organizing for America Health Care Forum

By Michael from Santa Monica, CA - Aug 20th, 2009 at 5:37 pm EDT

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Billed as a strategy session and “an incredible opportunity to huddle with the President and discuss how we're going to pass real health insurance reform this year”, what we got was preaching to the choir by our Professor in Chief, rather than a discussion of strategies to actually move this forward.

I was ESPECIALLY disappointed to hear the President refer to the select panel as a legitimate negotiating method, and to hear him praise the Republicans on it, including Senator Grassley who has promoted the lies about death panels, as acting in good faith.

Surely Obama can’t be this naïve!!

First of all, how can that panel be legitimate when half of the members are Republican in the first place. This is not the proportion that was elected. Voluntarily giving them equal weight has only prevented any real reform from moving forward. A perfect example of this is how the single payer option was never considered, because these Republicans would never go along with it. This freed them to target any public option as socialized medicine, which it now sounds like we are moving away from as we try to compromise with them.

The American public elected a Democratic majority to get the job done. In giving away our majority to do so, I can only assume that enough Democrats have been bought out by special interests so that no intent to actually deliver effective healthcare reform has ever been intended. Instead apparently we only wanted to sound like we are trying to accomplish it, while at the same time stacking the deck against ourselves.

Secondly, the actions and comments from these three Republicans have shown that they have no interest in passing anything. Grassley himself, after warning people to be afraid for grandma, recently said that he would never support a bill that a majority of Republicans would vote for. Given the underhanded tactics that they and their pundits use, it should be obvious that they have NO interest in a dialog in good faith, and are only negotiating as a means to drag out the process with a series of endless compromises, while they foster an environment of hatred and intolerance for reform.

Wake up Mr. President!!!

Quit letting the Republicans and Blue Dogs play you for a fool.

It’s time to show less compassion and understanding and instead more backbone and righteous indignation.

Call out the liars as despicable and unpatriotic.

Quit trying to convince the Blue Dogs to support reform by watering it down, and instead make it politically impossible for them to act against it.

Stop portraying the anger in America as legitimate debate and instead demonstrate how it is manufactured astro-turf.

If you don’t feel like you can do this and be a nice guy, assign a senior hard-ass to do it for you. The movement desperately needs someone to lead the counter charge.

It also needs more clear organization...

Your discussion today only vaguely stressed the need for people to talk to their friends and neighbors, and offered a couple of talking points in response to a couple of questions.
Lame! We need someone who is actively providing clear instructions on what and how to help.

At a minimum, there should be a 3-5 point bullet list of talking points that everyone is pushing. Shorter, sound bite length talking points, which you can then lecture on to your heart’s content.There needs to be clear instruction on who to contact to help.We need to take the tactics of our opponents, refine them so they are morally acceptable, and then deploy them in a clear fashion.This movement needs a General to guide it.

Now unfortunately, I missed the beginning of the Forum due to internet issues, so maybe the initial speakers provided this leadership and guidance.
If so, I’ll be very, very happy to see more information coming from them in the future.

So far though, this effort seems like a weak, half-hearted attempt to capitalize on the exact same volunteer structure used during the election, without realizing that it needs more focus and clarity to work for an issue-specific movement. And for God’s sake, don’t think that we will win in the end based on the pattern of the election! A lot of the reason that we won convincingly is that the Republicans imploded towards the end of the election.We can’t count on that now, especially given that there are such powerful special interests whose profits are directly threatened by the reform movement.

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Video Clips of Schiff Town Hall: Democracy Will Not Be Silenced

By Douglas from South Gate, CA - Aug 17th, 2009 at 12:41 pm EDT

CLICK HERE for links to the video clips I have posted at YouTube.

"Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us." -- Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas

Try though they may, over a thousand well-organized, very vocal opponents of health care reform failed to drown out over a thousand well-organized, very vocal supporters in the boisterous outdoor "town hall" meeting courageously hosted by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Pasadena) August 11 in the Alhambra, California, Civic Center. Featuring a panel of health care professionals committed to reform, heroically moderated by local TV medical editor Dr. Bruce Hensel, and covered by the local to national news media, the meeting, though tempestuous, came off as scheduled, unlike recent U.S. town halls effectively shut down by opponents. And most importantly, myths propagated by the leaders of the opposition -- misleading their legions of followers -- were debunked; much information verifiable if you "read the bill" -- as the opponents kept shouting, even though an unbiased reading of H.R.3200 proves their claims untrue -- was presented to an audience estimated by police at 3,000. Read More »

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White House losing Health Care debate? Gee whiz....Mobilize....Stop playing Defense 24-7: Offense requested..Where's Rahm?

By Varun from Berkeley, CA - Aug 11th, 2009 at 6:51 pm EDT

Also listed in: 9 groups

.NYT article LINK

The New York Times reported today that the White House is quietly conceding that they are losing control of the Health Care Reform debate. So......in response......? A march? Rapid Fire TV ads? Formal debates moderated by NPR, PBS, ABC, NBC? Nope....a website.........That's it....a website..

The WH released a myth busters website.......What Obama should do is concede he needs a little help from his friends.....Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Howard Dean, Mike Bloomberg, Warren Buffet and other Business Leaders and even the Kennedys to get the word out and deal with the fires.

comment: varun22@yahoo.com

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Intelligence Report on Town Hall (Hell) activities: New details leaked re Right Wing Plans

By Varun from Berkeley, CA - Aug 11th, 2009 at 6:22 pm EDT

Also listed in: 9 groups

Guns at rallies, Attacks, Using the N word, calling Obama a Nazi, chanting Nazi slogans and even attempting to attack elected officials as they try to moderate the Health Care town halls, it seems the press is moving very slowly to understand who the FEW, the Minority, screamers, racists and right wing nut job, home grown terrorists really are.

Just reported: the SEIU obtained a Tea Party startegy via a Right Wing mobilization conf call.

The summary: Just destroy Obama's plan at any cost....No reasons....just be the party of NO

http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/seius-notes-on-a-tea-party-strategy-conference-call/

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Healthcare reform and social justice

By SocialJudge - Aug 9th, 2009 at 8:40 pm EDT

These town hall meeting protestors should be ashamed! I can't believe that they want to stop the progress that we're finally making with healthcare in America. Is asking for basic healthcare for all Americans really so offensive to these teabaggers??

It's not fair that healthcare companies can destroy the democratic process by buying off a bunch of people to do their dirty work for them! We need to shout louder than these teabaggers and show them our compassion towards those among us who need a helping hand!

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14 Things That Fascist Regimes Have In Common

By Mike Kurtz - Aug 7th, 2009 at 9:07 pm EDT

I had read this article a while ago. But given the current flurry of Limbaugh using the word fascism and Nazi, I thought it would be worthwhile to review these points. My only conclusion is that they really do speak to the Republican party, their mission and their methods and their Rudolf Hess (Rush Limbaugh).. Read More »

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Support Obama's Health Care initiative and Attend Dan Lungren's Town Hall Meetings

By Mike Kurtz - Aug 7th, 2009 at 8:55 pm EDT

I received this email e-vite from my Congressman Dan Lungren. I urge you to attend at least one of these meetings and support our health care initiative. Read More »

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OFA at the National Constitution Center

By Bill of Downingtown - Aug 4th, 2009 at 9:50 am EDT

On Sunday, August 2, OFA in Chester County, PA had a busy day. First, we did phone banking for a few hours in West Chester. Then some of us travelled to the National Constitution Center for the Health Care Town Meeting with Senator Arlen Specter and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.

That happened to be the day that over four inches of rain fell in the Delaware Valley, closing the Schuylkill Expressway. Our trip became a tour of the western suburbs.

We arrived in the Constitution Center just as the Senator and Secretary were being introduced. I was still on the ground floor, but I heard loud booing and jeering from the floor above. By the time I got to the area of the Town Hall I discovered this:

1. The acoustics of the meeting location were awful: high ceiling, very reflective surfaces, a booming sound. Unless you were right in front of one of the public address system speakers, you probably could not understand what was said. I moved around until I found a spot to listen.

2. There were a few noisy individuals who wanted to scream and boo but not listen. It was clear that they did not support health care change; it was not clear why. It was also clear that they were acting out of a dislike for Senator Specter and President Obama (and by extension his HHS Secretary) and that they did not know much about the bills currently before the Congress.

A loud group will gain more attention than a listening group, no matter what their relative sizes. But Senator Specter and Secretary Sebelius are veterans of public service: they know this. What we don’t want is for Senator Specter, in particular, to think that only the loud, negative people care.

Back to the phone banks. Join me, won’t you. Find an event at

http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/search_simple?source=topnav

Thanks for coming!

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Republican Psycho Babble

By Larry Gordon - Jul 28th, 2009 at 3:03 pm EDT

President Barack Obama had a town hall meeting today sponsored by AARP. At this town hall, the President explained exactly what health care reform was and why it has to be. President Obama took questions fromt he audience and answered all questions well.

Immediately following the AARP sponsored town hall, CNN allowed Republican Representative from Virginia Eric Cantor to refute President Obama. Representative Cantor did not refute specifically any one item that President Obama said at the town hall. Republican Representative Eric Cantor went on his own spiel of degrading health care reform by reiterating Republican misinformation and flat out lies. In part, I blame the CNN reporter for not forcing the Republican Congressman to stick to specifics of the town hall.

One thing for sure: I can have no respect for the Republican Congressman from Virginia whose sole purpose was to browbeat President Obama and health care form. At the same time, Republican Representative Eric Cantor offered nothing, and for sure, offered the American people nothing but Republican partisanship at its crassest level.

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On the Decriminalization of Marijuana...

By Michael from Van Nuys, CA - Mar 26th, 2009 at 3:48 pm EDT

Obama's Online Town Hall Meeting had questions voted on by the people, and the top 4 vote receivers had to do with the decriminalization and regulation of marijuana. Politico is the only news outlet reporting on it at this time, but it is news worthy of the other major media outlets as well.

1. It could be a source of additional tax revenue, much as alcohol was after the repeal of Prohibition during the Great Depression.

2. If legalized, it would curb the illegal drug trade and violence associated with Mexican drug cartels.

3. It would create a new industry for farmers and other industry related jobs for the health care industry.

These are just three of many powerful and logical arguments for the decriminalization of cannabis that should finally be seriously debated by the mainstream media and government officials, especially in the midst of our "Great Recession". I look to all major media outlets to report on this issue more extensively.

Best regards,

Michael J. Piekutowski
Proud American

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Barrack Obama challenges teachers' union in Los Angeles

By Ericha from Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA - Mar 26th, 2009 at 12:07 pm EDT

At his town hall meeting last week, Barack Obama answered a question about California education. It seems that without reform there will be no federal bail out money except as provided in the stimulus package. Hard news story.

http://www.examiner.com/x-5067-LA-School-District-Examiner~y2009m3d22-Obama-challenges-teachers-unions-to-reform-before-any-federal-bail-out

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Town Hall meeting - Los Angeles - March 20, 2009

By Sandy - Mar 20th, 2009 at 10:21 pm EDT

Also listed in: Americans with Disabilities for Obama | Disability Community For Obama

aWESOME. WOW! - this is not regarding what was said (haven't even gotten there yet!) - it was about BEING INVITED! By the WHITE HOUSE. (I have always seen me in comoparison to the national scene as a small fish in a GARGANTUAN pond. I can't even remember the last important person I SAW, much less MET. While I have heartily believed in Obama's message since I first read stuff over a year ago, I never expected THE WHITE HOUSE to contact.... ME!

And the way that I got "connected" with the White House totally indicates the power in the ability to change things. A year ago, in the 'disabilities' groups that I had found here and joined, besides discussing issues, points of view, how the campaign was going - some folks were actively trying to get the campaign to change "disabilities" from ISSUES to PEOPLE. It was not a simple task - and I am definitely not claiming any accolades in its' ultimate success. But succeed it did! Which goes to show you that Obama et al is truly about CHANGE.

Fast forward a few months. Kareem Dale joined the discussions, had a blog which focused on disability-related issues. He is an attorney who is visually impaired, and is from Chicago. He became the campaigns coordinator/ person in charge for disabiliy policies. I had written him a few times - asking questions - commenting, etc. And he took the time to respond.

I didn't continue to email him (that was last summer) but every once in awhile I got an email from him (group email)........................... Fast forward about 8 months. I get a quick email from him - I am INVITED to attend the town hall meeting in LA! INVITED! INVITED!!

Wow, this little fish in the gargantuan pond somehow was significant enough to merit such an honor. So I went and got the ticket - I was number5! The thing was worth GOLD (which I don't have!)

I couldn't sleep the night before. It was surreal - going from obscure anonymity to being important enough to get INVITED!

I sat in the third row (wore red so you can find me!).

Now the reason I sat so close is "interesting". I have a hearing impairment and wear aides. While I can clearly undwerstand normal speech up close, I need hearing aides to hear softer voices, higher female voices, etc. And hearing aides are notoriously bad in crowds. Analog aides ($900 each) don't discern which sound is important and which sound is not - it magnifies everything.

So I asked a volunteer about assisted listening devices (ALD). I can get them when I go to the theater. Took awhile, and a Whitye House staffer came and APOLOGIZED to me - they didn't have any. I am guessing that perhaps no one has ever asked for them before (weird, because many people wear aides and probably hear things like me). She mentioned something reL ASL interpreter as an accommodation - but that is for people who USE IT. Many others with hearing loss do not.

A LAUSD representative came (I had suggested they contact the site to see whether they had anything) - the lady never came back so I assume they had nothing.

Now I can't recite the ADA verbatim, but I do think there is something in there about "accommodations". To "accommodate" one needs to know WHO needs accommodations. I don't think this is a daunting task since there are any number of disability-focused groups out there who would be more than willing to help identify necessary accommodations. Like wheelchair access (done), ASL (done). Am I the only person with a hearing impairment who wears analog aides and has the same auditory crowd scene experience? Since I was told this by the audiologist who fitted me with aides, he probably told other people. So, logically, this should not be some deep dark unknown. But then I *AM* that small fish in the GARGANTUAN pond and maybe my section of the pond is "different". (???)

SO.... I could hear the speakers at the podium clearly (duh! 3rd row). But when Obama walked over to one side - things got harder to understand. And the questions - I basically hadn't a clue as to what anyone said. I could only guess the question's intent via Obama's answer. I *KNOW* I understand much better via ALD (I use one with the TV!)

Well, I emailed my concern to Mr. Dale. He is now Special counsel to the President on Disability Policy. (Think that is the whole title). I think he'd be the one to logically check this thing out, and maybe fix it.

But hey ... the ADA is not new. Didn't Clinto n sign it? That's a long time ago! And you mean that every time a President had a meeting with the public (or even a meeting, PERIOD) and no ALD's were available ... does that mean that government workers, by default, have perfect hearing ... or am I the only one? I just can't fathom the White House missing this. I wonder about stage theaters - can a ticket holder get an ALD to isten to the Broadway play?

Oh heck... I have a rare congenital syndrome (Moebius syndrome - congenital oculofacial paralysis). In other words, the Secret Service men on duty have the same smile that I do. Soooo... when I was raising my hand like everybody else, I wonder if Obama maybe saw/though - "no smile ... weird ... nah..." (not that blunt but you get the idea). I also observed that media really look for attractive people (and black people - I am *NOT* denigrating race here AT ALL - my point is that by focusing on black people so much, they keep the race issue there, when it seems the issues of the day are economy, health, education... Maybe they are looking for stories their viewers want (well, duh! if they changed what they were looking for - their story - the people who watch would still watch!!!)

In summary (ha! look how long this is!) - Obama was great. He is so NORMAL. There are not enough keystrokes to write the positive stuff I feel for him and his plans. And there are issues that still need resolution. And, having seen the Obama machine work this past year - things will get worked out.

YES WE CAN!

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Obama connects with townhall audience

By John Cavanaugh - Oct 8th, 2008 at 12:54 pm EDT

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By Peter S. Canellos, Boston Globe Staff

WASHINGTON - John McCain had two goals in last night's town hall-style debate: To rekindle the straight-talk rapport with average voters that was at the core of his primary campaign, and to raise some fresh doubts about his rival, Barack Obama, who has been leading in recent polls.

But from his first remark, "Senator Obama, it's good to be with you at a town hall meeting" - possibly a simple greeting but more likely a veiled reference to Obama's refusal to accept his proposal for 10 town hall debates - McCain's two goals seemed to pull against each other.

Sometimes sarcastic and sometimes sincere, McCain seemed off-balance in a way that undermined his much-repeated claim of being "a cool hand at the tiller."

Obama, who did not particularly excel at town hall-style debates during the primaries - sometimes seeming lordly or professorial - was better than McCain last night at connecting with audience members on their own terms.

When a voter asked what was in the financial bailout package for him, McCain launched into an attack on the abuses in the mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, claiming that they occurred "with the encouragement of Senator Obama and his cronies and friends in Washington."

Obama looked the questioner in the eye and said, "Well, Oliver, first let me tell you what's in the rescue package for you. Right now, the credit markets are frozen up and what that means, as a practical matter, is small businesses and some large businesses can't get loans. If they can't get a loan, that means they can't make payroll. If they can't make payroll, they have to shut their doors and lay people off. And if you imagine just one company trying to deal with that, now imagine a million companies all across the country."

Obama's answer had the slightly syrupy quality that made Bill Clinton extremely effective in town hall settings - and sometimes set him up for ridicule afterwards. But such answers are the standard by which town hall debates are judged. Unlike encounters at which both nominees stand behind lecterns, town hall debates test a candidate's ability to frame issues in ways that are meaningful to average people.

McCain, during the primaries, did that and much more - winning plaudits for saying things that most politicians would never say. Sometimes, he openly disagreed with questioners. Sometimes he admitted to weaknesses in himself. Often he challenged conventional assumptions about issues - for example in his politically brave opposition to subsidies for the alternative fuel ethanol.

Little of that McCain was visible last night.

"We in New Hampshire saw him do a lot of these meetings," said Dartmouth College political scientist Linda Fowler. "What was memorable about them was his physical energy, his willingness to say unexpected things. . . . None of that McCain was in evidence last night."

A likely explanation was that, with only four weeks until Election Day, McCain felt pressure to raise doubts about Obama. That required pointing an accusatory finger.

But lines like "Senator Obama would have brought our troops home in defeat," seemed unnecessarily mean when delivered in a friendly setting amid a group of average voters, especially with a confident Obama standing by.

McCain was far better in the rare moments when he bantered with questioners, such as when he told a Naval veteran that everything he learned about leadership came from a chief petty officer.

As in last week's debate, Obama matched McCain point-for-point on foreign policy, and defended himself against McCain's attacks; he fired back with accusations of his own at times, but maintained a more positive tone overall.

Obama called attention to areas where he and McCain agreed, as in the first debate, citing the need to counter Russian dominance in former Soviet satellite states as an example. And he couched his criticisms of McCain and even the Bush administration in gentler terms than his rival.

When asked by moderator Tom Brokaw if healthcare was a privilege, right, or responsibility, McCain chose responsibility. Obama said it was a right.

As at many other points last night, Obama seemed more in touch with his audience.

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The second presidential debate

By Daniel Baker - Oct 8th, 2008 at 12:40 am EDT

I scored this debate a tactical draw. Strategically, that's a win for Obama. Obama is up about five points nationwide. He's now narrowly ahead in Florida, Ohio, Virginia, and Nevada, and he was already winning even before those states started leaning his way. McCain's lead in Missouri, Indiana, and even North Carolina is slipping away. McCain needed to decisively turn the momentum in this debate, and he couldn't. Obama was up by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter; now he's still up by two touchdowns and he just ran five minutes off the clock.

Obama mostly played defense this time; he launched some quick raids but no frontal attacks. McCain did his best to play offense, but tended to get sidetracked a lot from the question at hand.

Neither candidate was very impressive in discussing the number one issue, the economic crisis. McCain immediately veered off point into energy policy; Obama gave a fair and accurate summation of the nature of the problem, but had little new to offer about the bailout plan and his talk of new regulation had no real specifics on how it would fix the problem or prevent it happening again.

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Know Thine Enemy

By Marjani - Oct 7th, 2008 at 12:24 am EDT

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Monday, October 6, 2008

Dear Townhall Reader:

John McCain is declining in the polls, especially in key swing states. The National Republican Trust PAC, our sponsor today, has a strategy to help McCain win. Please take a moment to read their message below.

Thank you.

Obama's Radical Agenda Exposed

An Urgent Message from The National Republican Trust PAC

Dear Fellow American:

Never before in the history of our nation have we faced such a grave crisis: one of the most radical political figures ever to be nominated by a major party is just minutes away from becoming President of the United States .

That man is Barack Obama. He promises to change America forever. If elected, he will do just that - but in ways you may not like.

Remember Obama is the most liberal member of the United States Senate.

He received a 100 percent Liberal Rating from the National Journal, making him the most left-wing Senator in Washington - more liberal than even Democratic senators like Ted Kennedy.

If you look at Obama's record, you will understand just how dangerous this man is.

He even has terrorist friends he won't denounce. One such man is William Ayers, a leader in the radical terrorist group the Weatherman Underground. The group bombed several government buildings, including the Pentagon, killing civilians and police officers. In 2001, Ayers said he had no regrets for his actions and wished he could have done more. The ties between Obama and Ayers are tight. Both served on two non profit boards and they worked closely together. Ayers even hosted a political event at his home for Obama. Obama has acknowledged he is a friend of Ayers and defends his association by saying he, Obama, was only 8 years old at the time of the Pentagon bombing. However, Obama has no explanation as to why he is still a friend of Ayers.

Obama has even been endorsed by radicals such as Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan. No one can deny hearing about Obama's relationship with the America-hating Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

There should be little doubt that William Ayers and Louis Farrakhan and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright are rooting for Obama - because he is one of them.

In keeping with such friends, Obama has promised to meet with radical leaders like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad without "preconditions" even though Ahmadinejad has promised to "wipe Israel off the map" and "destroy" America. Even radical Hamas terrorists have praised him.

"We like Mr. Obama and we hope he will win the election," Ahmed Yousef, senior Hamas leader was quoted by ABC radio as saying.

Help the National Republican Trust PAC tell the truth about Obama - Go Here Now

Dangerous Economic Plan

And then there are Obama's dangerous economic plans for America.

He wants to almost double the capital gains tax. He wants to strip the FICA tax cap off every worker making more than $97,500. He wants to increase the dividend tax. He wants to let the Bush tax cuts expire - giving almost every American family an automatic tax increase.

He has called for more than $800 billion in new spending programs.

He is so radical he even backed driver's licenses for illegal aliens - even though such a move would help future terrorists move freely in the United States.

He is the most pro-abortion candidate in the history of the country. In 2001, as a state legislator in Illinois, he opposed a bill to protect live born children - children actually born alive! He was the only Illinois senator to speak out against the bill.

He opposes gun rights. He has long history of trying to deny ordinary citizens access to guns. He originally backed Washington D.C. 's total ban on private handguns - a ban that was overturned. The NRA rated him an "F" on gun positions and says he is one of the most dangerous anti-gun politicians in the nation.

Never forget that Obama is a Harvard educated elitist. To him we Americans are simply "bitter" and he has mocked us saying "[they] cling to their guns and their religion."

Support the National Republican Trust PAC's Campaign to Expose Obama - Go Here Now

Exposing the Truth

Hillary Clinton was late in recognizing the threat Obama posed to her campaign, but once she did, her strategy worked. When Hillary exposed Obama publicly, her campaign saw a major turnaround. Hillary won every major state primary in the nation with the sole exception of Obama's home state of Illinois.

And even though Obama was "anointed" by the media and Democratic elites, Hillary went on to win eight of the last 10 Democratic primaries.

How did Obama beat Hillary for the nomination?

Well, using a loophole in Democratic rules, he was able to rack up large majorities in caucus states where he outspent and out organized her.

But in large, contested states she won almost every time. Why? Because when Democrats heard what Obama really stood for, they turned on him.

Make no mistake about it: If we let Americans know the truth about Obama, John McCain can win this election!

But we must employ Hillary Clinton's strategy. We must expose Obama for the dangerous radical he is.

You Can Make a Difference

This is why the National Republican Trust Political Action Committee is moving to implement a "shock and awe" strategy against Obama in key states.

We plan to take out powerful television ads, Internet ads and other communications to inform Americans about the dangers posed by Barack Obama.

As a political action committee, we can accept up to $5,000 in donations per contributor. A $5,000 donation can help us saturate a key market for a full day with television ads.

But if you can't do the full amount, even $2,500 or $1,000 or $500 - Any amount you can afford will help

Stop and think how much Obama may cost you and your family in new taxes over the next four years alone: $50,000, $75,000, $100,000 or even more.

Your donation today may actually save you much more in the years to come.

It will most certainly help our great nation.

Thank you.

Yours for America,

Scott Wheeler
Executive Director

Paid for by The National Republican Trust PAC. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. 2100 M St. NW Suite 170-340 Washington, DC 20037-1233

The National Republican Trust PAC is not affiliated with the Republican National Committee

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New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson in New Hampshire this week

By Brian - NH HQ - Sep 24th, 2008 at 6:26 pm EDT

Tuesday, Governor Bill Richardson was in New Hampshire for three Town Hall events. He started off his day in Manchester at Southern New Hampshire University where he fired up the crowd of students, faculty, and community members. He spoke about the Obama-Biden plan for foreign policy, the current economic crisis, and energy independence. Richardson told the crowd that Obama was against huge golden parachutes to corporate CEO’s, would make the concerns of Main Street a priority in his Administration, and that Obama believed the current financial crisis required bipartisan oversight.

Governor Richardson at SNHU.

Next, he spoke to a group of Latinos in Nashua on the importance of electing Barack Obama the next President. He stressed that Senator Obama understood the concerns of Latinos and would fight for health care for all, immigration reform, and economic development. Richardson told the crowd that Barack has a long history of standing up for Latino’s going all the way back to his community organizer days on Chicago’s South Side. Si se puede! To join Latino’s for Obama click here.

Governor Richardson speaking in Laconia.

On his last stop of the day, Governor Richardson spoke to a great crowd in Laconia. He encouraged the folks in Laconia to get involved and help Barack Obama win New Hampshire by canvassing, making phone calls, and writing letters to the editor. You can even write them online here. Find out how you can get involved in your area by calling or visiting your Local Field Office. All in all, Governor Richardson and those who came out to see him had a great day. Thank you for coming Governor, you really got us fired up!

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