Rep. Betty McCollum health care town hall in St. Paul on Monday, August 31, 2009

[Eric J in MN]

From an email from Organizing for America:

I wanted to send you an urgent invitation to an important health care town hall with Rep. Betty McCollum this Monday, August 31st.

She'll be talking to constituents and gathering feedback on the need for reform. Whether you ask a question or show your support with a sign, attending this event is a powerful way to show where you stand and thank those in Congress who are fighting for reform.

I hope you can join us. Here are the details:

What: Health Care Town Hall with
Rep. Betty McCollum

Where: Macalester College
Weyerhauser Chapel
1600 Grand Ave.
St. Paul, MN 55105

When: Monday, August 31st
Arrival Time: 6:00 p.m.
Start Time: 7:00 p.m.




Please arrive as early as possible to the town hall, and make sure that the most powerful voices in this debate are those calling for real reform, not angrily clamoring for the status quo.

Jenn Brown
Minnesota State Director
Organizing for America

[kickysnana]

1. FYI Paper says that that it is limited to 400 persons

[Mister Ed]

2. Better fill those seats, or disruptive teabaggers willl. n/t

[RidinMyDonkey]

3. Is anyone here going to be there?

I've printed out my sign and everything...


Little nervous though, 400 people is a lot!

[Eric J in MN]

5. Were you there? If so, what happened? NT

NT

[annm4peace]

4. any one go? any reports?

I hope she changes her mind and supports single payer

[Mister Ed]

6. Well, if we don't have a volunteer to recap, here's the Pioneer Press story:

http://www.twincities.com/ci_13243282?nclick_check=1

McCollum's 90-minute public meeting at Macalester College was a civil affair. Audience members asked their questions and stated their positions politely and often passionately, but there was no shouting or disruption.

Based on the signs they carried, the crowd packing the Weyerhaeuser Chapel appeared to overwhelmingly support President Barack Obama's health care overhaul plan. An overflow crowd that McCollum's staff estimated at nearly 400 listened to the forum from speakers on the chapel lawn.

While it was largely a friendly crowd, the five-term Democratic congresswoman from St. Paul got an earful from opponents of the Democratic health bills now pending in Congress and from proponents who argued lawmakers aren't going far enough to change the system.

[dpbrown]

7. I was there

I took my little activist. There were probably 500 to 800 people outside, and the inside was filled by the time we got there.

As usual, the people who should have gotten there early didn't, and probably the majority of the questions asked of McCollum were from anti-reform plants or ignoramouses.

There were people in the crowd outside trying to get people to take "Don't Tread on Me" yellow flags. I told her those were the idiots who were holding the flags, and that there weren't too many idiots there because not too many people would take the flags.

I was disappointed in the tone McCollum took, by going on about bipartisanship and fretting that a plan might not even pass this session. She kept saying that she supported the public option as only a "last resort" and "emergency" but didn't say anything about providing a necessary check on private insurance greed. I was also disappointed that I didn't hear a single question or comment about the relative efficacy of a single-payer national plan or about asking the CBO or Congress for a mark-up on the cost savings in a single-payer plan.

She did say that she strongly supported reform, which seemed clearly reactive to the make-up of her district. Though anti-government and anti-reform questions and comments made up the majority of the comments to her that I heard, it was clear that the pro-health "insurance" (those cleverly designed signs by the DFL) reformists outnumbered anyone else by about 90% to 10%.

I think it's disingenuous for the Democrats and the DFL to be foreclosing discussion of reform that includes a single-payer model, if only for comparison purposes. I heard that single-payer people were classified as "anti" reform at the rally held at the DFL a couple weeks ago.

If Obama doesn't get a strong plan passed with a robust and competitive national insurance through, then he'll be a one-term President. He's being hamstrung by corporate whores like Emmanuel.

People don't understand how good for small businesses a national health care plan with single payer would be. Imagine not having to be a wage slave to underemployment in order to get necessary health care. This, Mr. President, would unleash that creative potential you seem to enjoy giving lip service to.

[Eric J in MN]

8. Thanks for the summary. NT

NT

[Spike from MN]

9. Thanks for attending and thanks for the report.

Do you know what McCollum meant by saying she supported the public option only as a last resort? Would that be compared to single payer or compared to "huge handouts to the insurance companies in the form of mandates and whatever else we can use to screw over the poor and middle class." I haven't really seen where she's gung-ho on single-payer so I'm wondering what the public option as a "last resort" really means.

Here's what she says on her website about health care reform:

Reforming Our Nation's Broken Health Care System

A Statement from Congresswoman Betty McCollum
"I strongly support President Obama's goal of reforming our nation's broken health care system with a focus on reducing cost, increasing access, and ensuring quality care for all Americans. The current system is not sustainable for families, businesses, taxpayers, or providers of health care. Some 60 million Americans are uninsured or under-insured and are too often left to access care in the emergency room -- where it is too expensive and too late. Millions more are just one pink-slip away from completely losing health insurance."

"It's time to build a health care system focused on outcomes for patients rather than profits for the health care industry. To achieve this goal, access to comprehensive health insurance and basic health care must be expanded. Preventative services and public health must become priority investments that will reduce costs. All of America's children must be covered. Prescription drugs should be affordable. No one should be denied coverage due to pre-existing conditions. And medical decisions should be made by patients and doctors - not by insurance company accountants."

"For the many Americans who are satisfied with their doctors and private insurance legislation moving forward in the U.S. House ensures you can keep your doctor and policy while providing relief from skyrocketing insurance premiums. For families who need an affordable insurance option, I strongly support the creation of a public option that will expand the opportunity for coverage and create competition in the marketplace to keep premium costs down and ensure quality care."

http://www.mccollum.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=550:health-care-reform&catid=52:issue-spotlight&Itemid=79

OK, I think I have it figured out. She "strongly supports" the public option but only as a "last resort." Whew! Glad I cleared that up for everybody. Looks like she's taking a page from Amy "Not Taking a Stand" Klobuchar.

You're right about the single-payer advocates being lumped in with the anti-reform crowd. From Sunday's Pioneer Press:

"They wouldn't let me in the ropes holding this sign," said Jeff Kerr, 34, of Roseville.

His sign read "HR 676" in big red letters. The bill in question was introduced in 2007 and aimed to establish a national insurance program. It was co-sponsored by Ellison.

Shari Sebastian, also of Roseville, was upset about having to sign a pledge of support in order to get in.

"You had to stand as a protester if you didn't support the Obama plan," said Sebastian, a 50-year-old political independent. "People over here are made to look like they don't support reform."

http://www.twincities.com/ci_13187219?IADID=Search-www.twincities.com-www.twincities.com

Dpbrown, you said the majority of the questions were from "anti-reform plants or ignoramouses." How do you differentiate between the two? I have a hard time telling the difference myself. ;)

[dflprincess]

10. It sounds like she's talking out of both sides of her mouth

She says we should all have access to insurance without mentioning that that doesn't guarantee care, yet she wants everyone to have access to "basic care" - but just what is meant by "basic"? Preventative care doesn't do you any good if you can't afford any follow up treatments that the test may show you need.

She says "No one should be denied coverage due to pre-existing conditions" - but she doesn't tell us how the insurance companies will be kept from making the price of that coverage or out of pockets so high that you still can't get care.

I'm being to hate them all (except the few that vocally support single payer).

[Spike from MN]

11. You're right, though I was thinking of another orifice. ;)

Nice synopsis of McCollum's non-stand, Princess.

She wants to have it both ways -- placate the voters in her heavily Dem district while assuring health insurance corporations that their profits aren't at risk.

"Access" to health care doesn't mean a thing. Anyone and everyone could have "access." They just need to pony up $$$$$. If they're not willing and/or able to do that, apparently it's their own damn fault.

I think "basic care" means "don't you dare get sick."

"Coverage", like "access", doesn't mean squat. As you pointed out, people won't be "denied" coverage because of a pre-existing condition. It's just that the premium will be so damn high there's no way they will be able to afford it. But hey, no one is "denying" them coverage so again, it's their own damn fault.

You're beginning to hate them all? Heh, welcome to the club. I've been a member for a long time now. With the Dem's blatant sellout after the latest election, membership has been growing by leaps and bounds. I'm sure the Dems absolutely hate being in the majority. Makes it a lot harder to hide what they really stand for, which is, er, whatever their corporate masters tell them they stand for.