Think Progress has a copy of the memo detailing the strategy of organizers who show up at various townhall meetings of Congressional representatives. The plan: harass the hell out of them.
– Artificially Inflate Your Numbers: “Spread out in the hall and try to be in the front half. The objective is to put the Rep on the defensive with your questions and follow-up. The Rep should be made to feel that a majority, and if not, a significant portion of at least the audience, opposes the socialist agenda of Washington.”
– Be Disruptive Early And Often: “You need to rock-the-boat early in the Rep’s presentation, Watch for an opportunity to yell out and challenge the Rep’s statements early.”
– Try To “Rattle Him,” Not Have An Intelligent Debate: “The goal is to rattle him, get him off his prepared script and agenda. If he says something outrageous, stand up and shout out and sit right back down. Look for these opportunities before he even takes questions.”
This is what counts for debate in America today? Let’s not have a discussion and let’s keep everyone else from having one, too.
Republicans everywhere should be denouncing these tactics.
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
The only thing Republicans are guilty of is plagiarism of MoveOn.org’s manuals.
And two wrongs obviously make a right. What childishness! This sounds like primary school fights: “But he did it first, wah, wah, wah!”
Refresh my memory. What was the MoveOn.org campaign that advocated disrupting Congressional town hall meetings for the purpose of thwarting debate?
You’re right, Bob. Their modus operandi was to shout down conservative speakers and throw things at them.
No, you miscontrue. I was looking for examples with documentation as we have with the Tea Partiers that MoveOn.org had a strategy of shutting down debate at public meetings.
Yes, the leftists do not need to be TOLD to shout down speakers (not just interrupt, as this memo suggests) and throw pies — it just comes naturally to them.
Ah ha! So Mr. Kirwin can make claims even hide-behind-anonymity commenters can’t substantiate. Gee, you could have at least made something up because your reputation is secured behind your refusal to own up to your comments.
Beat me to it, Brian, though I credited Saul Alinsky as the source. Of course, then there’s the editorializing — “ARTIFICIALLY inflate your numbers” — putting things in there that no politically savvy organizer would ever do.
There is no justification for this. Pointing the finger and blaming the other guy is childish and juvenile at best. But its the only thing the Republicans have. Hate, discontent, disruption and by all means avoid, “intelligent debate” on any issue. Just look at the republican blogs if you don’t believe me. They lost the House, they lost the Senate, they lost the White House, in Virginia they lost the Senate, are going to lose the House and Governors race again, yet they just don’t get it. One wonders how many races and campaigns they have to lose before it sinks in, that people are sick of this nonsense? Obviously by the two previous posts, they aren’t at that point yet.
I guess two wrongs do make a “right”
Well isn’t a negative multiplied by a negative a positive?
Seriously though Vivian, I agree with your point. Its hard to pretend that you’re better than MoveOn.org if you stoop to their tactics. All the coordinated shrill bashing makes it looked staged. I attend Tea Parties and blog about rallies opposing Cap & Trade/socialized medicine in front of the offices of sitting senators. To me, a strong show of force by a calm crowd is more persuasive than shrill hysterics. Is the object to accomplish something, or just “rattle” their cages?
I’m a Libertarian and not a Republican, but T.W. there stating that Republicans have nothing but hate and avoid intelligent debate is nowhere near the truth. Such a statement is just stooping to the ad hominem hateful labeling that T.W. will have you believe the Repubs as a whole, are guilty of. You don’t exactly encourage debate by using blanket statements yourself. If one chose to recognize those willing to discuss issues and compared them to the Republicans that won’t, you might encourage better behavior.
You won’t get any argument from me.
Oops, should have kept reading.
Speaking of “two wrongs,” Viv, let’s take a look at Think Progress’ copy of the memo: it’s a fraudulent as President Barry’s Kenyan birth certification. Plainly, beginning with the second paragraph, it’s retyped to add value-laden terms which seem to concede that it’s author is knowingly engaged in fraud.
For a real copy of the memo, readers should check out Doug Mataconis’ post on the issue.
You’re a funny guy, James. While Doug has the entire memo (which I cannot embed here), his post contains the EXACT SAME quotes I have above.
Yes, we see so many right-wingers shouting down left-wing speakers and throwing pies at them.
The actions of the ultra-right wing minority is frightening. Their actions at these town hall meetings should not be laughed off.Hitler was classified as a clown. The Beer Hall Putsch happened in November of 1923 when Hitler and his storm troops surrounded a meeting of government officials and threatened to kill them if they did not swear loyalty to his “revolution.” Many German Industrialist supported “the little clown”. Now, we have the giant health care insurers financing right wing nut jobs whose agenda is far more reaching than just government health care policy. These folks fear that their “white” America is threatened and are always looking for scapegoats. Laugh as you may to this anology. The Germans laughed in 1923, and 10 years later, they were under the thumb of Hitler, “the little clown”.
It seems to me to be the left that is trying to take over the auto manufacturing, banking, and health care industries. Sounds like the “Socialist” in “National Socialist Party.”
That socialist party banned guns, too.
There is no use arguing about economics with you Anon E. Mouse. The previous Administration’s laisey-faire ecomomic philosophy would have sat back and done nothing, and would have been happy to have Church’s supply soup to the jobless and homeless.
And the current administration is doing a fantastic job, everything is just wonderful and future looks promising! Please. Stop blaming the Bush administration for all of our current economic woes. At some point, the current admin is going to have accept responsibility for their terrible economic decisions (Auto, Bank, Health Care, Cap n Trade)!
Just like the Bush administration took responsibility for 9/11.
Actually, it was Bush and McCain that wanted more oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (both government-created entities established to distort the housing market), and the socialists in Congress opposed them. That lack of oversight of government-created monstrosities caused the housing bubble, which eventually collapsed as all bubbles do.
I invoke Godwin’s Law.
You lose.
Vivian, let me say I dislike this option of replying to specific comments, because the format does not allow the conversation to continue properly.
Bob, some of us hold positions that do not allow us to make public proclamations.
I have limited the depth of threaded comments to 5 – meaning that you can only go 5 deep. I can increase it – and then the comments get really skinny – but generally speaking, most folks prefer threaded over the flat.
Have you taken a poll? 🙂
Anyway, in newgroups (such as Yahoo!), there is no limit, and the comments don’t get skinny.
Hitler also held staged town halls, just like Obama.. these comparisons go both ways.
Seriously though, wake up people. Obama, Bush, same thing, same people controlling them from behind, two separate courses to the same endgame. Who needs a dictatorship when you can have a democracy where both parties are controlled by the same people. None are more hopelessly enslaved then those who falsely believe they are free. That means you all. Sorry.
Thinkprogress may have overstated its astroturfing claim.
http://tinyurl.com/ngorh2