There's more evidence that Rep. Kristi No-meeting's avoidance of the public this long August recess is part of a larger pattern of Republican behavior. House Republicans desperately want to avoid the negative media imagery of angry town hall crowds, whether Koch-tea astroturfers or regular folks, questioning their policy priorities. Many Republicans like Noem have thus avoided town halls and restricted the public's access to their Congresspeople through carefully controlled events.
But some members of Congress are still doing their jobs and talking with the public. And when they do, Republicans hear the public contradicting their anti-government orthodoxy. Consider Senator John Thune's summary of what he's heard from his constituents this summer:
While traveling the state this month talking to constituents, Sen. John Thune said he learned South Dakotans are frustrated with the inaction in Congress.
"Do something," Thune said Wednesday after a town hall meeting at the Brandon Municipal Golf Course. "Why can't you work together? There's a high level of frustration with the inaction, and there's a lack of confidence in the country and the economy. They want to see us get something done."
That's one of the major insights he'll take back to Washington, D.C. after the August recess, he said.
It ranks behind "don't cut my Social Security and Medicare. I've heard that quite a bit," Thune said [Peter Harriman, "At Brandon Town Hall, John Thune Hears Concerns about Entitlements, Taxing Online Sales," that Sioux Falls paper, 2011.08.24].
Senator Thune hears the same glorious theme brought forth by the 2009 town hall shouters: Keep your government hands off my Medicare! People want the government to help retirees. They want Washington to do something. At the Brandon meeting, Senator Thune hears a local business man ask the Senator for a national sals tax to protect local businesses from Internet competition.
Remember, even Republican voters lean slightly toward protecting benefits rather than toward the slash-and-burn fiscal policy Grover norquist has imposed on Republicans running for office.
Senator Thune can wallow in abstractions about too much spending, but the public wants specific government action. I know it's hard to hear you're wrong, but Republicans like Rep. Kristi Noem need to get out from their private meetings more to hear from all of the people, not just the $500-per-pancake country-club crowd.
Bonus Town Hall Video: Rep. Dan Lungren, Republican from California, gets a gentle town hall question about why he swears an oath to corporate lobbyist Grover Norquist when his only oath ought to be to the Constitution. Kristi, how can you deny us this opportunities like this?