“I don’t have $15 to ask Rep. Ryan questions, so I guess this is the only means I have to talk to him.”

August 30, 2011 9:41 AM

Are you a constituent of Paul Ryan and want to tell him what you think? Better pay up. Or maybe not.
posted by griphus (85 comments total)

Matt does this for $5, but he gets the people who pay to answer.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 9:45 AM on August 30, 2011 [15 favorites]

Lucy used to charge a nickel.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 9:47 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

An entry fee to keep the trolls away? Bullshit.

Well, bullshit for an elected member of government who should needs to be accessible to every single member of his constituency. Believe me, there are folks where $15 is an unacceptable burden.
posted by m@f at 9:51 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

$15?, not the same in town.
posted by clavdivs at 9:51 AM on August 30, 2011 [5 favorites]

They should show up at the face-to-face meetings with copies of their past tax returns, stamped "Paid in full."
posted by rtha at 9:52 AM on August 30, 2011 [45 favorites]

FREE MARKET BITCHES! LOVE IT OR LOVE IT BECAUSE YOU CAN'T LEAVE IT!
posted by GuyZero at 9:56 AM on August 30, 2011 [25 favorites]

What ever happened to the good old fashioned "Use muscle to keep unfriendly-looking people out of your events"? $15?!? Outrageous!
posted by Bromius at 9:58 AM on August 30, 2011

The worst part: it's a barrier to entry for people whose voices are already marginalized.

The second-worst part: those who do pay up increase the size of his war chest.

Addendum to the second-worst part: it lets this guy spend yet more time in an echo chamber.
posted by gurple at 10:02 AM on August 30, 2011 [20 favorites]

Crazy asshole acts like a crazy asshole. News at eleven.
posted by JimmyJames at 10:04 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

I hope someone pays the money, gets in, and spits in his eye. Or worse.
posted by dbiedny at 10:05 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

Last I heard, bribery was illegal.
posted by empath at 10:08 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Buy the people, but not for the people.
posted by Old'n'Busted at 10:11 AM on August 30, 2011 [4 favorites]

So, technically, this is a tax, right?
posted by schmod at 10:11 AM on August 30, 2011 [7 favorites]

Yes, I can't put my finger on it, but this seems to teeter on illegality. Maybe something to do with campaign financing, maybe something to do with budget transparency, maybe something to do with voter rights.
posted by jabberjaw at 10:11 AM on August 30, 2011

Aside from gaming local and national debates to eliminate the presence of third parties, this is the most unashamed, blatantly undemocratic move I have ever seen. This is not the United States - it's imperial Rome. It is also inevitably where libertarianism and "money is speech" leads you.
posted by Bora Horza Gobuchul at 10:13 AM on August 30, 2011 [15 favorites]

But will this annoy enough people that he'll lose the next election? Probably not. And that's not his fault.
posted by klanawa at 10:13 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

Paul Ryan, together we can make America young again..
posted by crunchland at 10:14 AM on August 30, 2011

I applaud his honesty. Elected officials in the US don't hear you unless you have money, anyway. He's just being overt about it and saving some people the effort.
posted by Mayor Curley at 10:16 AM on August 30, 2011 [3 favorites]

In Canada they just check your facebook status and if they see evidence of carousing with the other side(s), they kick you out.
posted by Brodiggitty at 10:18 AM on August 30, 2011

What he seeks to avoid is hordes of screaming people and the bad press that follows from that.

Those town hall meetings dominated by trucked in Tea Partiers are part of what doomed Russ Feingold last year.

That and Democrats incredibly feckless messaging.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 10:18 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

Paul Ryan, together we can make America young again.

I can't watch the video at the moment, but am I wrong in imagining this as some sort of Logan's Run thing here?
posted by rtha at 10:19 AM on August 30, 2011 [4 favorites]

i think we should just ban campaign donations entirely and create a third house of congress exclusively to represent the rich and corporations and auction off seats directly. Winners can be known as the Senator from Halliburton, etc. We could even auction off naming rights to the chamber.
posted by empath at 10:19 AM on August 30, 2011 [5 favorites]

The second-worst part: those who do pay up increase the size of his war chest.

Did you read the article? He's speaking to the Whitnall Park Rotary Club and you get lunch for 15 bucks. It's not a fundraiser.
posted by Jahaza at 10:20 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Is this a new thing? I was trying to figure out how to meet with my California rep and the only way is to pay $500 to have lunch with him at some club in D.C.
posted by Big_B at 10:21 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Buried in that "Pay Up" story, this:

Cravaack, a first-term Republican from Lindstrom, 126 miles south of Duluth, announced last month that he was moving his family to New Hampshire. He has held town hall meetings in Brainerd and Grand Portage, each more than 115 miles from Duluth, according to WDIO-TV.

He told the paper Duluth’s constituents are welcome to meet with a staffer at his district office’s office hours. Cravaack told the paper he will return to Duluth when it suits his schedule, but that wouldn’t be during the August recess.

So he'll be running for one of those two New Hampshire Congressional seats next go 'round?
posted by notyou at 10:22 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Thankfully I live just a few miles north of the cutoff, in the most Democratic district in the state.
posted by desjardins at 10:22 AM on August 30, 2011

Whoops nevermind. Looks like some events got added last I checked. A somewhat local townhall is tonight in fact.
posted by Big_B at 10:23 AM on August 30, 2011

From the Politico article:

“Democratic Party of Wisconsin spokesman Graeme Zielinski said Ryan is scared to defend his record before his fellow citizens.

“Paul Ryan has had a hard time going before open crowds, and for good reason,” Zielinski said. “I’m sure Ryan doesn’t want to go before the public to explain while his extreme ideology caused Standard & Poor’s to downgrade U.S. long-term treasury bonds. Beside, Ryan likes smaller settings — the kind where you can cozy up to a hedge fund manager and get a good $350 bottle of wine.””

The opposition's gonna have a field day with this one.
posted by zarq at 10:24 AM on August 30, 2011

Thankfully I live just a few miles north of the cutoff, in the most Democratic district in the state.

The fighting 4th, represent!

Paul Ryan's District is some crazy gerrymandering. It covers some of the more conservative bits of Milwaukee, down through Racine, and then west all the way to Janesville. There are some incredibly different populations in there, but it's been rigged so it'll be a tough get for Democrats.
posted by drezdn at 10:25 AM on August 30, 2011

The opposition's gonna have a field day with this one.

It would, but the largest paper in the state practically openly roots for the republicans.
posted by drezdn at 10:27 AM on August 30, 2011

Heck, the corporate citizens have bought access for years. It's only fair that the individuals start to pony up.
posted by Sir Cholmondeley at 10:27 AM on August 30, 2011

I don't think the objection is that the Rotary Club is asking for money to cover their food costs. The objection is that this is the only "public" meeting he's scheduled during the recess and that he's rejected other requests for meetings.
posted by desjardins at 10:28 AM on August 30, 2011 [3 favorites]

The opposition's gonna have a field day with this one.

If you mean the bottle of wine thing specifically, it's a really old story.
posted by Jahaza at 10:29 AM on August 30, 2011

(old in 24-hour news cycle terms)

I don't think the objection is that the Rotary Club is asking for money to cover their food costs. The objection is that this is the only "public" meeting he's scheduled during the recess and that he's rejected other requests for meetings.

It seems people have a variety of objections, some potentially sound, some not.
posted by Jahaza at 10:31 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

FREE MARKET BITCHES! LOVE IT OR LOVE IT BECAUSE YOU CAN'T LEAVE IT!

My Australian passport says otherwise.
posted by Talez at 10:35 AM on August 30, 2011

Dear Mr. Ryan:

You're the fucking EMPLOYEE here. Get your ass out there and listen.

Sincerely,

Someone who actually read the Constitution
posted by Benny Andajetz at 10:37 AM on August 30, 2011 [10 favorites]

Jahaza: "If you mean the bottle of wine thing specifically, it's a really old story."

Meant the entire quote. They'll paint anyone who does this as aloof and a lapdog of the wealthy.
posted by zarq at 10:39 AM on August 30, 2011

Did you read the article? He's speaking to the Whitnall Park Rotary Club and you get lunch for 15 bucks. It's not a fundraiser.

Fair enough; it's not going straight into his pocket. Likewise, the $35 you can pay to have lunch with Rep. Quayle technically goes to the Arizona Republican Lawyers Association.

So, no, the money doesn't go directly to the lawmakers. It goes to the right-leaning groups that host the events. So when you pay $15, you're paying for Ryan to make nicey-nicey with his base.
posted by gurple at 10:44 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Paul Ryan, together we can make America young again.

Like take her back to 1911 or, better yet, 1811.
posted by Benny Andajetz at 10:48 AM on August 30, 2011 [4 favorites]

It goes to the right-leaning groups that host the events. So when you pay $15, you're paying for Ryan to make nicey-nicey with his base.

Try again? Rotary is not a GOP front group.
posted by Jahaza at 10:51 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Rotary International is a right-leaning group?

Jeez I've heard some pearlers from idiot liberals in my time but this tops the lot. Stop making the rest of us look bad.
posted by Talez at 10:52 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

One day they'll charge $10,000 to ask a question, but you'll be able to apply for financial aid if this is an unacceptable burden to you. But most people won't know that you can get financial aid for politician-question-asking -- they'll think you have to pay the sticker price -- and so only the rich will get to talk to their elected officials.

Also, can I start charging my students to ask me questions?
posted by madcaptenor at 10:54 AM on August 30, 2011

You know, Tea Party people probably have $15 in their checking accounts and can show up and have their say anyway. They'll have something new to talk about now, too. I wonder if the attendees will be screened at all.
posted by longsleeves at 10:55 AM on August 30, 2011

The worst kept secret in Washington (and at the state level, too) is that congressmen are much more likely meet with constituents who have donated to their campaign; the bigger the donation, the easier it will be for their staffers to find time for you in their schedule. I have been told this explicitly by people encouraging me (as a member of various groups) to lobby my representatives in person on various issues. So this is just an expansion of business as usual.

Which still sucks.

When I was a wee lad, I actually got to meet my senator while on a trip to Washington. No appointment or anything, my parents just called his office and he wasn't busy so we saw him the next day. He was as corrupt as anyone back then but still not as bad as the average politician today.
posted by TedW at 10:59 AM on August 30, 2011

I staffed Sen. Specter during the town hall meetings of the Tea Party summer of 2009. Whatever you may think of him, he was an 80-year-old man, alone with a mic, face to face with anyone who would get up before dawn to secure a place on line--face to face with people whose fury was fanned and exalted by these reprehensible members of Congress.
posted by oneironaut at 10:59 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

Also, can I start charging my students to ask me questions?

The institution* that pays you already does.

Were you to give a lecture or a teaching demonstration at your local Rotary, for example, they may or may not decide to charge a fee for attendance, to cover their costs or as a fundraiser or whatever.

With Jahaza and Talez on this: sometimes its best to save your powder.

------------------
*Somewhat indirectly if your institution is a public K-12.
posted by notyou at 11:00 AM on August 30, 2011

This is not the United States - it's imperial Rome.

No. This is the United States, or what's left of it. We need to stop saying that "this doesn't happen here" or "this isn't what the United States does". It is. We sell access to the highest bidder. Our laws are written by whoever pays the most to write them. Corporations are people, while citizens are consumers or else they are scum. We go to war for profit. We torture. We censor what can be said in public and by whom. Those are the facts, and saying that "this isn't what we do here" doesn't change the fact that this is what we do, here.
posted by T.D. Strange at 11:04 AM on August 30, 2011 [29 favorites]

Buried in that "Pay Up" story, this:

Cravaack, a first-term Republican from Lindstrom, 126 miles south of Duluth, announced last month that he was moving his family to New Hampshire. He has held town hall meetings in Brainerd and Grand Portage, each more than 115 miles from Duluth, according to WDIO-TV.

He told the paper Duluth’s constituents are welcome to meet with a staffer at his district office’s office hours. Cravaack told the paper he will return to Duluth when it suits his schedule, but that wouldn’t be during the August recess.

So he'll be running for one of those two New Hampshire Congressional seats next go 'round?
posted by notyou at 12:22 PM on August 30 [+] [!]


Ayup.. I'm in Duluth and give you the full scoop on Chippers.

1. Our district is too damn big, about 300 miles from top to bottom, and Chippers lives at the bottom, essentially a Twin Cities Suburb, which is pretty far removed culture wise from the rest of his district.

2. Duluth finally pressured him into having a town hall after he came up 2 weeks ago for a fundrasier. The town hall was held at the edge of town at the airport, during the working day (4pm) where the front 2-3 rows was pre-stacked by Chip supporters in their tee-shirts.

3. his own damn office in Duluth didn't know about the meeting until well after everyone else, which caused a fair bit of confusion as to weather or not is was going to happen

3. the Town hall mainly consisted of him giving the prepackaged (literally) thumb drive power point economic talking points that the GOP is sending out with it's members nowadays. Reports indicate it was the same presentation Patric Duffy (he who defeated Fiengold) gave over in Superior WI last month.

4. For whatever reason Chip is getting about 98K a year disability payment from his former employer for sleep apnea, something I am sure was the result of a strong union (which he now opposes).

5. Chip is indeed moving to New Hampshire next year because his wife has a job out there. He justifies running again on the basis that he will spend Saturdays in MN and Sundays in NH.

5a. One of the things that Chip and his supporters criticized Oberstar (who he defeated) for was living in Washington DC and not spending enough time in MN. Suffice to say both Chip and his supporters see nothing wrong with him fleeing to the tax haven in the NE.

6. The lady who ran against Michele Bachmann last time has moved to the district to challenge Chippers, there are at least two other decent challengers.

questions?
posted by edgeways at 11:05 AM on August 30, 2011 [8 favorites]

Crazy asshole acts like a crazy asshole. News at eleven.

Yes, because all crazy assholes are created equal, especially the ones in positions of influence and power.
posted by blucevalo at 11:07 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Reports indicate it was the same presentation Patric Duffy (he who defeated Fiengold) gave over in Superior WI last month.

Ron Johnson beat Feingold (and spent nearly 10 million dollars of his own money to do it). Duffy won the seat that David Obey had given up.
posted by drezdn at 11:09 AM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

yeah you are right drezdn, mea culpa
posted by edgeways at 11:13 AM on August 30, 2011

Rotary International is a right-leaning group?

I never said it was. I'm not talking about Rotary International; I'm talking about Whitnall Park Rotary Club. I'm assuming it's roughly as right-leaning as the preponderance of businesspeople in Ryan's district.
posted by gurple at 11:21 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Why would you want to talk to a legislator anyway? It's like talking to a parrot; it makes the noises its been trained to make in exchange for food.
posted by a robot made out of meat at 11:26 AM on August 30, 2011 [3 favorites]

In point of fact, it doesn't matter much whether the lunch is hosted by a right-wing group or a centrist group. Either way, your $15 goes to help him solidify ties with a group of people whose members might vote for him.
posted by gurple at 11:33 AM on August 30, 2011

I hope someone pays the money, gets in, and spits in his eye. Or worse.

Spits in his MOUTH?
posted by hal_c_on at 11:33 AM on August 30, 2011 [3 favorites]

That's gonna cost you a lot more than $15.
posted by griphus at 11:35 AM on August 30, 2011 [5 favorites]

So when you pay $15, you're paying for Ryan to make nicey-nicey with his base.

Unlike anyone else in Congress? What's the big shock about this? How is it "your" money? It's the $15 paid by people who want to go, not tax dollars. You want to go harangue him, feel free.

Faux outrage on the blue. I never.
posted by Ideefixe at 11:36 AM on August 30, 2011

In point of fact, it doesn't matter much whether the lunch is hosted by a right-wing group or a centrist group. Either way, your $15 goes to help him solidify ties with a group of people whose members might vote for him.

If you're going to keep digging while you're in that hole at least try to dig upwards.
posted by Talez at 11:37 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

the Town hall mainly consisted of him giving the prepackaged (literally) thumb drive power point economic talking points that the GOP is sending out with it's members nowadays. Reports indicate it was the same presentation Patric Duffy (he who defeated Fiengold) gave over in Superior WI last month.

Slight corrections--Senator Feingold was succeeded by Tea Party puppet Ron Johnson, and I think you're referring to congressthingy Sean Duffy out of Hayward, WI, who used to be known as "that dick from Real World Boston".
posted by padraigin at 11:55 AM on August 30, 2011

Yeah, Duffy is the one who can't make ends meet on $174k per year in Northern Wisconsin.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 11:57 AM on August 30, 2011

Pogo_Fuzzybutt, live bait costs a lot these days.
posted by desjardins at 11:59 AM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

You want to go harangue him, feel free.

Um.
posted by rtha at 11:59 AM on August 30, 2011

Yeah, Duffy is the one who can't make ends meet on $174k per year in Northern Wisconsin.

Right. I actually spend quite a bit of time in his district and granted, he has three and a half times as many kids as I do but come on. Does he need me to come over and show him how to use Mint?
posted by padraigin at 12:05 PM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

If you're going to keep digging while you're in that hole at least try to dig upwards.

My point is this: in addition to the $15 keeping the riffraff from talking to Paul, it allows him to spend some money in his district, which will ingratiate him with the people he spends it on, which is good for him.

Do you disagree with my point?
posted by gurple at 12:21 PM on August 30, 2011

The opposition's gonna have a field day with this one.

I keep saying things like this too, and they keep not happening. I'm really beginning to wonder if the opposition to the Crazy Fucking Right actually knows how to have a field day with something, or if they think it involves actually going to a field, and maybe burying their heads in the sand or something.

Because I keep seeing shit like this and not hearing a word about it in protest from the people who should be speaking up.

Paul Ryan is an asshole and an opportunist. That they haven't found a way to make this a narrative that resonates with people just shows that they really aren't trying.
posted by quin at 12:23 PM on August 30, 2011 [9 favorites]

"Reports indicate it was the same presentation Patric Duffy (he who defeated Fiengold) gave over in Superior WI last month.

Slight corrections--Senator Feingold was succeeded by Tea Party puppet Ron Johnson, and I think you're referring to congressthingy Sean Duffy out of Hayward, WI..."
posted by padraigin at 7:55 PM on August 30 [+] [!]

Damn. And there I was thinking how cool it would be for you to have the Man From Atlantis as your Congressman.

*swims off*
posted by marienbad at 12:29 PM on August 30, 2011

We can make America young again by practicing some eugenics... this also solves the problem of Social Security and only requires we enact the death panel option on Obamacare... man - this guy knows his stuff!
posted by Nanukthedog at 12:30 PM on August 30, 2011

My point is this: in addition to the $15 keeping the riffraff from talking to Paul, it allows him to spend some money in his district, which will ingratiate him with the people he spends it on, which is good for him.

You're just making shit up about your point as your going along. Your original point was that "right wing front groups" run the show which Rotary is most certainly not then you switch gears to some keeping out the riffraff without anything but a couple of select data points, conjecture and anecdotal evidence.

I'm personally reserving judgement till I know more about the circumstances so count me out of the outrage circlejerk.
posted by Talez at 12:36 PM on August 30, 2011

That's gonna cost you a lot more than $15.

I heard it was just $5 more. Same as in town.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 12:40 PM on August 30, 2011

You must have misheard; that's how much it costs to have him spit in your mouth.
posted by griphus at 12:42 PM on August 30, 2011

I would pay Paul Ryan 25 dollars, if he agreed to dress like Eddie Munster at all his public appearances and he could keep his lunch.
posted by octobersurprise at 12:47 PM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Here's the email I got a couple of weeks ago from Wisconsin Jobs Now: (I must have gotten on their list during the spring protests, I hadn't heard from them before this.)

Jennifer, have you heard what's going on in Kenosha?

I'm Kelly Restarski. I'm an unemployed Kenosha resident, an activist, and I wanted to let you know that we've got something big brewing down here.

While unemployment in our district remains high, Paul Ryan is dodging constituents like us and our attempts to schedule meetings with him to address the jobs crisis. When we asked him to meet, he replied with a form letter stating that his schedule is full and invited us to participate in a telephone "conference call meeting" instead.

That's why we went to his office on Thursday and demanded that he meet with us in a live town hall meeting. After being told that it would not be possible to meet with Rep. Ryan, we decided to sit and wait, "as long as it takes." The ensuing sit in and response from Paul Ryan was all captured on video.

Click here to see a recap of the first day of the Paul Ryan protest and sit in.

This civil action has made some national waves, its been covered on Think Progress, the Kenosha News, and the Huffington Post.

Watch the recap today, and share it with your friends and family.

In 2009, Paul Ryan scheduled 17 town hall meetings in the district, so how can he justify holding ZERO this year? Rather than filling his schedule with fundraisers and meetings with his rich corporate donors during this crisis, Ryan owes his jobless constituents face-to-face meetings at no charge.

The sit in and protest will continue daily, until Paul Ryan shows up.

Spread the word,

Kelly Restarski
Kenosha, WI

I got this one a few days ago:

Jennifer,

I'm Scott Page. I'm an unemployed Kenosha resident, and for the last week I've been sitting-in Paul Ryan's district office to demand he hold a FREE town hall meeting to address the jobs crisis.

Well, we WERE holding a sit-in at his office until yesterday. That's when Ryan's staff and the building owner filed formal complaints against our peaceful sit-in. Then they had a group of geared up police kick us out of the building permanently.

Click to see a video of the police telling us why we have to go

They didn't give us a very good reason, but I think it's ridiculous that we had the cops called on us for just waiting to meet with our representative. Paul Ryan held 17 town hall meetings in August of 2009, and this year all he's having is a pay-per-view event that costs $15 and requires screening to get a chance to ask a question.

Call Paul Ryan today and demand he let us back in!

Ryan seems to be bending over backwards to discourage participatory democracy. His policies encourage cuts in the essential services millions of people need to make ends meet while giving gigantic tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations. Paul Ryan owes his jobless constituents face-to-face meetings at no charge, let him know that his strong-arm tactics won't be tolerated in Wisconsin.

We set up an exchange to reach any of his offices, click to use our calling tool. Or dial 1 [phone] directly and demand that he stop telling the police to keep constituents out of his office.

Thanks for your support,

Scott Page
Kenosha, WI

posted by desjardins at 1:05 PM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

If I were Paul Ryan and I'd done what he did, I'd be too embarrassed to face the voters, too.
posted by crunchland at 1:13 PM on August 30, 2011

Paul Ryan is my rep, and he's such a fucking tool. I wish I didn't live in an uber-right wing neighborhood. :(
posted by [insert clever name here] at 1:16 PM on August 30, 2011

Well, we WERE holding a sit-in at his office until yesterday. That's when Ryan's staff and the building owner filed formal complaints against our peaceful sit-in. Then they had a group of geared up police kick us out of the building permanently. ... They didn't give us a very good reason, ...

I'm guessing it had to do with the fact that you were holding a sit-in at his office.
posted by Jahaza at 1:25 PM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Paul Ryan Tries To Create Tax Loopholes For His Biggest Donors
posted by homunculus at 1:32 PM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

GOP Congressmen Put Constituents Who Asked Tough Questions On A ‘Watch List’
posted by homunculus at 1:34 PM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

quin: " Paul Ryan is an asshole and an opportunist. That they haven't found a way to make this a narrative that resonates with people just shows that they really aren't trying."

I suspect there are a lot of people in this country who are disillusioned, don't believe they can possibly make a difference and feel powerless to stop the wealthy from manipulating this country for their own gains.

Which doesn't excuse anything. But I wonder sometimes if that's the underlying problem more than anything else. A general malaise perpetuated by historical precedent. Most of the voting electorate in this country has little immediate legal recourse if one of their elected politicians begins screwing them over like this. Getting the voting public fired up is only possible if (a) they're bothering to listen and (b) they believe you can change things for the better and aren't just marginally less corrupt.

A very powerful message is then required to make people care. In the 2004 Presidential election, it was fearmongering: "DO WHAT WE SAY OR THE TERRORISTS WILL GET YOU!" In 2008 it was, "LIFE DOESN'T HAVE TO SUCK! EMBRACE CHANGE!"

During the 2008 campaign, there was a great deal of cynicism from non-Obama Democrats about him. He had a nice message, granted. But I think at least some Dems like me believed his image was carefully-tailored and not totally reflective of reality. That he was just another politician, an over-promising opportunist who would say or do anything to get elected. Whether we were right or not, he couldn't have won without that powerful, consistent message, which galvanized voters.

So now, President Obama has both fulfilled and walked away from various campaign promises. Been satisfyingly aggressive on some issues and frustratingly hypocritical on others. All of this is natural, considering the political climate and the realities of his situation. Realistically, it's impossible to please everyone, all the time.

But he won the race by raising expectations and because of that some disappointment is totally inevitable. It probably trickles down. Besides which, his opponents have doubled down.

I don't think it's that the Dems aren't trying. I think they simply haven't found a way to make the voters care yet.
posted by zarq at 2:00 PM on August 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

That's gonna cost you a lot more than $15.

Yeah, but the thing is, strangers can pay him to take their biological fluids in his mouth. Another reason he really shouldn't be representing people at the legislative level.
posted by hal_c_on at 2:58 PM on August 30, 2011

Ok, we don't know what the local Rotary is up to, but we do that in this other example, an attendee's money is pretty clearly being given to a group that can and likely will funnel it into the congressman's campaign:

Rep. Chip Cravaack (R-Minn.) took heat in Duluth this weekend for holding ...a $10-per-head meeting to be hosted next week by the local chapter of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, which on its invitation notes that the organization “supported Chip in his stunning upset over longtime Congressman Jim Oberstar in the 2010 election.”

Congressional rules are pretty strict about distinguishing between official business and campaign stuff - it affects even little things like whether the congressperson can be reimbursed for gas to drive to the event, for example. This event sounds like it's really zblurring the line - here's hoping the Ethics Committee smacks him down (but I doubt it).

As for this story:

In an attempt to schedule a personal visit with the man who represents me to congress I sent him an email explaining how I wanted to talk with him about his job creation policies…He emailed me back, an automated response of course, stating how busy he is during his August recess and how he will not have time to take my appointment, but I am welcome to join a conference call at the end of the month.

On the one hand, although Members of Congress should meet with constituents as much as possible, they really are legitimately too busy to take every single meeting they are asked to take. When constituents get all "GRAR HOW DARE YOU NOT MEET WITH ME I PAY YOUR SALARY," it makes me roll my eyes. However, um, that is what staff are for - district staff in particular, in a case like this. Constituents absolutely deserve to meet with somebody, and this "join my conference call" thing is really weak sauce.

That's when Ryan's staff and the building owner filed formal complaints against our peaceful sit-in.

This is sort of vague - was it the building owner or was it the staff? If it was the staff, fuck those guys. However, if Ryan's office is in some sort of complex or strip and the protestors are taking up the parking lot and the other business's customers can't get in, then the building owner has a legitimate complaint that Ryan's office has zero say about (this is not a hypothetical, I've seen it happen before).

Overall: anyone who doesn't hold ANY town hall meetings in August is really pathetic.
posted by naoko at 4:00 PM on August 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

I staffed Sen. Specter during the town hall meetings of the Tea Party summer of 2009. Whatever you may think of him, he was an 80-year-old man, alone with a mic, face to face with anyone who would get up before dawn to secure a place on line--face to face with people whose fury was fanned and exalted by these reprehensible members of Congress.

God on you, oneironaut (and Specter gets props too for not being afraid of cranky constituents) - I spent the summer of 2009 holed up at my desk on Project Do-Something-About-Our-Constituent-Mail-Backlog-Oh-My-God and did not have the pleasure of staffing these personally, but my coworkers who did were subject to an insane amount of verbal (and occasionally physical) abuse.
posted by naoko at 4:12 PM on August 30, 2011

I wish I didn't live in an uber-right wing neighborhood
I live in a pretty far right neighborhood. I'm to the right on a lot of things but for practical every day reasons. Not for ... well, I don't know. I have this sort of conversation with the neighbors I stay away from : Guy "Goin' huntin', huh?" Me: "Yeah." Guy: "Nice truck. Ooh. Nice gun." Me:"It's a rifle. A gun is a cannon." "Guy: "Oh, were you in the army?" Me: "Uh, military, yeah." Guy: "Obama hates guns. He wants to pull out and leave us weak. I'd shoot him." Me:"Yeah, got a firearm?" Guy: "Uh, well, no... I was... I want to get one." Me:"Yeah." Guy: "So what do you shoot." Me:"Deer. Elk. Tastes better than presidents." Guy: Loud giggle.
Me: "Look, I've got to go." Guy: "Ok. Don't let the liberals get to you." Me: "Yeah. You live down there don't you? What are you doing by my place?" Guy: "Oh, my dog ran away." Me: *rack* "Oh, yeah? He doesn't bite I hope." Guy: "Uh, no. No. No need to shoot him." Me: "Ok. Since you've given your word. Well, see ya."

People like that choosing a candidate sort of shows you how those kinds of people wind up in office. Paul is such a cock.
posted by Smedleyman at 9:13 PM on August 30, 2011 [4 favorites]

A general malaise perpetuated by historical precedent failure to pursue justice for the crimes of the previous administration and the banksters.

FTFY

General Malaise is very evil. If allowed, he will incite riots and all manner of mayhem, while making it nearly impossible to make anything better. He obviously is a Republican!
posted by Goofyy at 7:06 AM on August 31, 2011

5 Kicked Out and 3 Arrested at Paul Ryan Town Hall For Asking Questions
posted by homunculus at 12:19 PM on September 8, 2011

One thing that gets lost in some reporting on the Ryan town hall is that when one of the guys (a seventy year old) got arrested, Ryan joked that he hoped the guy took his blood pressure meds.
posted by drezdn at 1:28 PM on September 8, 2011