AARP town Hall meeting closed for too MUCH members participation.
The SF Valley Congressman Brad Sherman (D) ‘Dog & Pony Show’ town Meeting goes from good to silly to hostile.
""This was the first time I have attended an event like this since my collage days way back when. I remember those events to be vastly different. And I am one of those strange people who enjoy watching the weekly Public Open Comments at the LA City Council meetings for the drama, information and sometimes entertainment value. So last night was going to be essentially a good night out even if I heard or saw some matters that didn’t interest me. I was ready.
I had received this Town Hall Meeting notice through my email. **How a Democratic email list got my email has got me slightly angry because I protect my email jealousy. Well onto the night….
I arrived early to get a seat in the large High School auditorium. Sherman aides and interns were busy in the lobby pushing the Congressman’s mailing list. They were telling people to fill out information cards so they could hear from him. I am sorry, I must say I was more interested in being sure I could ask a question of Sherman and have some snacks. I was given a one ticket because there was to be a orderly line for the question period. The early lower number tickets had a better chance to speak and be heard by the Congressman. I sat down and the auditorium was only 1/3 full and most people there were the ‘retired’ crowd so I couldn’t tell what their mood was. I saw one fellow wearing a Home Depot store t-shirt caught my eye and I overheard some three folks near me whispered, ‘How bad illegals have loused up LA’. I did not recognize them. Later two members found me and I was given five more ‘question Sherman’ tickets to help my chances. We all moved to the front of Sherman's view. I also noticed that Time Warner cable was taping this meeting and we were told that it would be shown in the SF Valley cable system ‘On Demand’ channel for free. I saw NO other media there except a lone consumer video camera set up by a civilian.
Finally we started, Sherman came out and told us about his committee responsibilities on Congress. He is involved with a science, insurance and a third committee in Congress. Most of his committees were small ‘potatoes’ I guess since he has only been in Congress for 10 years now. He is a very blabby fellow. I then recognized that he was a democratic member of the Congressional Immigration Fact Finding Meeting that was in San Diego and Texas. He was on CNN in San Diego when he started his participation with those meetings saying, ‘These meetings are a waste of time and money. This is merely a Dog & Pony Show!’ and then did not actively participate in the meetings investigations. I thought he displayed a real crappy attitude and unbounded arrogance to his fellow Congressman, the State officials testifying, the voters attending and the CNN national audience. (Some members attended those San Diego meetings in person.) With that attitude, I wondered if he thought the same of this town hall meeting too? Sherman asked people to have a short simple question and keep the complicated long questions to a minimum.
Finally, he got to the question time. He had the people who had Sherman staff initialed ‘question asking tickets’ to speak first. These folks took 90% of the time. They were a combination of legitimate questions from problems, long ranting statements with no questions, ‘tin-foil hat’ speakers, and shouts from the frustrated members of the audience. We had a questioner who spoke for Hesbolla in the Israeli conflict saying that the Israeli army response was too harsh. We had a local businessman complain about how he is in the bulk mailing business and if they close the Canoga Park post office where his office is, he will be forced to spend more time and money driving 7 miles to the Van Nuys PO station to mail his mail. We heard from the 9-11 conspiracy theorists, a ‘Cindy Sheehan’ wannabee on Iraq, social security, import tariffs and a lady’s emotional impressions of the Twin Towers falling almost six years ago with no apparent question. Then ticket numbers called forth were only in the first ten digits from the tickets given out tonight. Some shorter matters covered were truck delivering at night only for easier freeway traffic alla ’84 Olympics, Sherman’s abstentions and voting record, health care issues with ‘shingles’ vaccine, would Sherman debate his Republican opponent (Yes), veteran’s pensions, and **LASTLY immigration**. We were deep into overtime, and we were told that we had to close. It looked like the illegal problem was not going to be addressed by ‘Open Borders D- voting report card' Sherman. The last person in line to speak, a lady was bringing up a related problem with closing hospitals due to illegals not paying their bills and overcrowding. Well, hallelujah….Finally.
Sherman started to ‘tap dance’ around the issue sarcastically saying:
that at the border there are two big signs. One says ‘DO NOT ENTER’ and the other one says, ‘HELP WANTED’ and then he smiled at the listening crowd.
At this point a gentleman yelled out, ‘That’s no answer. Where do you stand on the issue!’
Sherman started to ‘tap dance’ more.
Then our friends yelled out, ‘You're the one who called the Congressional Hearings in San Diego a ‘Dog and Pony Show. I know because I was there!’
Sherman repeated his San Diego response again with, ‘It was a show…and there were some very dirty dogs and some very ugly ponies!’
The audience gentleman then said additionally, ‘You insult the voters. Shame on you! I am not voting for you!’
A well dressed black woman sitting quietly through all this asked Sherman, ‘Why did you vote for such-and-such open borders bill? I am an immigration lawyer and you are wrong to vote ‘for’ that bill, Congressman." I got the idea that the lawyer next to me was anti-illegal and was for the naturalization process to be supported. She told me that there should not be any amnesty because it caused much more problems since ’84.
At this time, the question time was abruptly closed and chaos ruled. Hoards of people were rushing the Congressman’s area and I decided to leave quickly due to it was very very late for me. I got my ticket initialed by a Sherman staffer and I was told they didn’t know what date would be the next meeting.
Perhaps I will return because my typed questions were very much more appropriate and concise than some of the personal rantings I heard tonight. Those rantings did not speak well for John Q. Public’s discerning mind and voting choices. I probably should have networked with those couple of anti-illegal folks in the audience, but I spaced around then.
I left the meeting feeling it was very entertaining, and small waste of some of my time.[b] I learned how Sherman thinks with his ‘In the Clinton years everything was great’ hardcore Democrat myopia. He can’t see past his political party to the welfare of the nation. That is a REAL problem.[/b] The political parties are too busy beating each other than accomplishing something beneficial for the voters. Sherman is a real ‘enough of you talking, I have to talk about me’ politician/lawyer. And he was the only ‘Dog’ or ‘Pony’ I saw that night! ""
The SF Valley Congressman Brad Sherman (D) ‘Dog & Pony Show’ town Meeting goes from good to silly to hostile.
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