More Signs the Town Hall Screamers Don’t Care About Policy

As the debate over health care reform continues its heated march through August, conservatives are defending the increasingly common lawmaker-directed town hall tirades as simple expressions of concern from constituents worried about the Democrats’ plans to overhaul the system.

But if Rep. Brad Miller’s (D-N.C.) experience is any indication, the Democrats’ suspicions that the town hall ranters are motivated by politics and not policy appear apt. From Miller’s interview with CNN this morning:

Most people want to have access to members of Congress to talk about a specific issue and they really think a one-on-one meeting is more access than a town hall meeting, and that’s what I’ve done.

So we were puzzled when we got, when we started getting calls in the last two weeks demanding a town hall meeting. And my staff would say, “Wouldn’t you just like to sit and have a private conversation with the congressman, and explain your position and ask him about his?”

They didn’t want that. They wanted a town hall meeting and I think we’ve seen why.

Right. Why have a civil conversation with your congressman when you’d risk missing your YouTube moment?