Grass Roots Organization, Messaging, Strategic Blueprints, Views on News • August 5th, 2009

Those pesky constituents…

by Chris Lato

For U.S. Rep. Steve Kagen, the heat is on. And Rep. Kagen, who’s been known to step in it from time to time, is lashing back at what he feels is a conspiracy organized by Big Insurance.

“I couldn’t have organized it better,” Kagen said. No kidding - and it wasn’t for a lack of trying.

  Jo Egelhoff writes about a union member attending the Kagen town hell and telling Jo that he was invited to attend via email by Kagen’s office.

Wait, what? You mean Kagen was trying to stack the deck? You gotta be kidding!

Nope - it’s politics, happens all the time. Turn out your supporters, manage the environment, look good for the cameras - both sides do it. For Democrats to be feigning outrage is amusing and hypocritical, but whatever - it’s all part of the game. Just so happens that Kagen was seriously outplayed this time.

But it’s interesting, the suggestion that somehow hundreds of people are being whipped into a mass righteous frenzy…by what? Some shadowy insurance company cabal? Are these crowds being fed some hyperactivity drug before the event?

This counterargument that this is all entirely manufactured outrage is kind of insulting to the constituents who took the time to show up and express their feelings. Even if they received an email asking them to show up, it seems their concerns still have merit.

It’s important to show respect and act in a civil manner. It sounds as though some people crossed that line.

At the same time, if those same people feel as though Washington is ignoring them, attempting to marginalize or dismiss their very real concerns is a dangerous road to head down. The notion that everyone should just roll over and take whatever’s coming because government knows best isn’t going to fly with an issue that touches virtually every citizen.

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