McCaskill admonishes crowd at health care forum in eastern Missouri
By SHEILA ELLIS
The Associated Press
HILLSBORO, Mo. | Sen. Claire McCaskill admonished the noisy crowd at a town hall meeting on health care reform Tuesday, saying the people shouting out comments and nearly drowning her out were being rude.
About 1,500 people turned out for the sometimes boisterous meeting in Hillsboro, about 30 miles south of St. Louis. Shouts frequently disrupted the meeting, and one man was arrested after allegedly taking a sign brought in by another person and ripping it.
"I don't understand this rudeness," McCaskill told the crowd at one point. "I honestly don't get it."
Someone shouted out that they didn't trust McCaskill, a Democrat who was among the earliest supporters of President Barack Obama when he began his run for the White House.
"Beg your pardon … you don't trust me?" McCaskill said. "I don't know what else I can do."
Many of the questions concerned health care for veterans and senior citizens. Others asked whether the government would fund abortions or provide health care for illegal immigrants under any reform plans.
Mary Ann Fieser of Hillsboro said elected officials owe it to citizens to allow them a forum for showing their displeasure with the health care proposals.
"If they don't let us vent our frustrations out, they will have a revolution," she said.
Obama spoke about his health care plan Tuesday to a friendly crowd of about 1,800 at a forum in New Hampshire, urging people to ignore scare tactics. His push came amid a string of disruptive town halls nationwide that have overshadowed his message and threatened to derail support in Congress.
Among the noisier meetings was one in suburban St. Louis last week, hosted by Democratic U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan. Six people were arrested following a melee at the forum.
McCaskill hosted two meetings Monday in southeast Missouri — one at Kennett was generally friendly, one at Poplar Bluff proved unruly at times.
But the forum at Jefferson College on Tuesday was loud from the start. The audience at times cut her off mid-speech, booing her answers and cheering speakers in the crowd.
"This really can't be about who is the loudest," McCaskill said.
She asked the crowd several times to "just give me a chance." Part of the forum was broadcast live, and McCaskill encouraged attendees to show good Missouri manners.
"I am so disappointed," she said at one point.
Some in the crowd said they appreciated that McCaskill persevered with the hearing while other senators canceled theirs or opted for teleconferences to avoid angry crowds.
A St. Louis-area primary care physician, Charles Willey, said he thought McCaskill handled the crowd and fielded questions effectively. He also said the crowd and time constraints didn't allow her to answer with much detail.
Willey, whose patients are mostly on Medicare, the health insurance for seniors, said he thinks the government should focus on reforming existing health care programs that he believes aren't managed well, like Medicare and Medicaid.
Ella Giles, 54, of St. Louis, left still wanting answers.
"The real question is, what are you going to do about it now?" she asked. "People keep asking questions but what we need is action, it's time for action."
McCaskill admonishes crowd at health care forum in eastern Missouri - Kansas City Star (12 August 2009)
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