With all the debate taking place regarding the promises made by Republicans in Congress and the White House to “repeal and replace” the Obamacare system, most of the people in the “mainstream media” have tilted their coverage to support liberals who want to keep in place what is also called the Affordable Care Act.
One obvious example of this strategy came on Tuesday, August 8, when NBC News reporter Dartunorro Clark stressed the negative elements of a town hall meeting held the day before by Doug LaMalfa -- a GOP member of the U.S. House of Representatives -- while omitting the support the California official has received there and elsewhere.
Clark began his article by stating that an angry voter had harsh words for LaMalfa since he had voted to undo Obamacare:
I think that your vote to throw 22 million people off of health [care] is reprehensible and in the service of the rich.
I hope you suffer the same painful fate as those millions that you have voted to remove health care from. May you die in pain.
The NBC News correspondent then noted: “The biting remark from the elderly constituent, who was holding a sign that read ‘Lackey for the Rich!’ was one of several intense moments from a passionate group of about 400 residents during the gathering in Chico.”
“The man -- who was not identified -- was jeered by some in attendance” before responding: “I’m not a nice person,” which elicited laughter from people in the crowd, Clark indicated.
"We pray for our constituents, too, sir," LaMalfa told the resident.
However, the congressman stood by his vote on health care: “People across the board are being hurt by this," LaMalfa said about Obamacare to a series of boos.
"I have the mic, folks,” he replied. “Yep, boo away.”
Clark also stated: “Residents who repeatedly jeered the congressman during the hour-long meeting were irked not only by LaMalfa’s stance on health care, but at his support for President Donald Trump on other issues.”
"I don’t buy the idea that man-made activity is responsible," LaMalfa said about climate change.
One resident, who was dressed up as the “The Wicked Witch of the West Coast,” called on LaMalfa to resign, Clark indicated.
“Some Republican lawmakers have been hesitant to hold town halls in their districts,” the reporter asserted, “citing security concerns and claims of organized outsiders infiltrating the districts to disrupt the meetings.”
“LaMalfa, however, shook off the broadsides lobbed at him during the meeting,” Clark noted, instead stating he thought the audience was "spirited" and "pretty good," compared to a previous town hall he held earlier this year.
The reporter for NBC News stated that some of the information in his article came from an item written by Phil Willon, who covers California politics for the Los Angeles Times from the state capital bureau in Sacramento.
“The open hostility and intransigence inside the Chico Elks Lodge came as the political divide in the country has grown more inflamed,” the Times reporter stated, “turning once-sedate town halls into in-your-face venting sessions that in left-leaning California have Republican House members on the defensive.”
Nevertheless, “most comments and questions during the hour-long town hall were fairly cordial, although they were laced with plenty of boos and catcalls,” Willon stated.
“Norma Wilcox, a retired nurse who lives in Chico, also questioned LaMalfa’s health-care vote,” the reporter noted. “Wilcox told LaMalfa the House plan would take away health care for millions of Americans.”
“I am open to new ideas,” LaMalfa told her, stating he will only support a new health-care program that provides affordable coverage to middle-class Americans.
However, conspicuous by its absence in Clark’s report is information Willon included that shows LaMalfa has had his share of supporters, both in that auditorium and his district.
The Times reporter stated: “The crowd of several hundred did include some LaMalfa supporters, though most stayed silent.”
He continued:
Ron Jones, 67, of Paradise said he’s been to a few of LaMalfa’s town halls, and all have been dominated by his critics.
“Most of the time people want to ... complain,” said Jones, a self-described conservative, after the event ended. “The people who support him are quietly in the background.”
“LaMalfa does indeed have a lot of support in the district that also overwhelmingly voted for Trump over Hillary Clinton in last year's presidential election,” Willon stated.
In addition, “LaMalfa won his last election by almost 15 percent, and though he has attracted a few Democratic challengers, the district is not considered a battleground for 2018,” he continued.
Despite the open hostility many liberals have voiced about issues like Obamacare, the true test of their convictions will come when it’s time to actually vote in future elections. We’ll see what happens then.
