Posted on 08/07/2009 7:56:01 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Members of Congress are increasingly turning to virtual townhall meetings--conducted by telephone--in an effort to reach more constituents while avoiding the potential that informational meetings might be disrupted by angry and persistent questioners or protesters.
One advantage to these telephone townhalls is that the Member of Congress controls the audience and the questioning.
As lawmakers head home for the August recess to meet with constituents, the contentious health care issue awaits them, and some are opting to conduct their townhall meetings over a telephone line rather than in an actual hall where their constituents can see them, speak directly to them, ask repeated followup questions--and shout unsolicited commentary from the back of the room.
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) is using a tele-town hall meeting in her only scheduled interaction with constituents, and various other lawmakers from both parties have held the live mass teleconferences lately, focusing largely on health care.
Rep. Walt Minnick (D-Idaho), whose district encompasses nearly one-third of the large western state, held a tele-town hall meeting with reporters and constituents July 24, saying it provides him with immediate feedback while in Washington.
“These ‘virtual’ town hall meetings have been a very useful way to get immediate feedback from my constituents when my work as a Congressman keeps me from being home in Idaho,” Minnick said in a statement announcing the event.
Steve Patterson, president of Broadnet, the nation’s largest town hall provider who has done tele-town hall meeting for political clients ranging from Newt Gingrich to President Obama told CNSNews.com that unlike in a normal conference call, during a tele-townhall, your congressman calls you.
“Whether it’s in politics or the market, our customers describe who their audience is to us by saying ‘here’s a list of the people we want involved in our conversation’ and in pretty short order we take that list, and we send them a recorded message with an invitation to stay on the phone to be part of a conversation,” Patterson said.
The calls usually last about an hour and much like a real town hall meeting include a live opening statement and a question and answer session with the hosting politician.
“It’s usually an hour-long event which starts with some opening comments from the host, and there’s an invitation to raise your hand – virtually – to more or less say that you have a question,” Patterson said.
“Generally what happens [next] is people find out what that question’s going to be and then the host, in the course of an hour selects anywhere between five and twenty questions,” he explained.
Politicians also have the option of leaving a voicemail number for constituents and conducting a telephone poll to glean more information from the audio audience.
Patterson said that the ability to participate in a discussion is what makes the tele-town hall format so popular with the public, saying that the more popular the host, the more people who participate.
“There’s no question that what creates the audience sizes that we create is predicated mostly on the fact that we give people an opportunity to just answer the phone and participate. This product is for anyone who has about 5- or 10,000 people and they want to communicate with them in an effective way.”
Patterson said that politicians are attracted to the format, because constituents like it because it is far more convenient for them than a traditional town hall meeting, especially for those who wouldn’t otherwise get access to elected representatives.
“What makes it attractive to them [politicians] is that it is attractive to constituents,” he explained. “Constituents truly do have an interest in what’s going on in government, what their politicians are representing, and who they are.
“But it’s difficult to participate in many other venues; it’s really not feasible for a politically motivated or interested person to lobby their congressman. They’re not going to Washington, D.C., and sit outside their office,” Patterson added.
“If you have a family it’s difficult to show up at a conventional town hall meeting when you can participate in a dialogue from the comfort of your home. That’s relevant,” Patterson said.
“It’s not a political rally – it’s a conversation with constituents,” he said.
The tele-town hall format is quickly becoming a “hub” of communications for members of Congress, Patterson said, as Washington eschews older practices in favor of new methods and new technologies.
“Politically, this has become for sure now one of the spokes of the political wheel, and in some cases, it’s becoming the hub, because it is one of the few ways that you can have direct access and direct conversation with somebody,” he said.
“When you say that we’re doing over half of the Congress and from the president down, this is why not only they adopted, [but] why they accepted technology in Washington,” Patterson added.
I’m sure this tactic will not raise the ire of constituents more than it is now. ;O)
“Please Mr. Custer”
“I don’t wanna go”
Like Rush said....if this was a healthcare I believed in, I would take it to the people and have my townhalls....
Kind of like the TV booking hearings when they bring the crooks in to be arraigned. I wonder if the Citizens will be handcuffed to protect the Acorn phone operators?
Yet most get reelected time and time again.
ACORN and voter disenchantment is a focus of reason for this.
It's enough to wake the dead....
We might have to find out where some of them live, and protest on their front lawns!
**ssies
I say call it like it is ... they’re CHICKEN.
My congressman, Pat Tiberi, is doing this too. I’m not even sure that it is even open to most district constituents.
Yeah, your congressman is running for cover.
It’s obvious they are not “representing “ their
constituents
Their hope is that they can all just stay in Washington and rule from the Palace. They hate being away from the Hive.
It is apparent to me they aren’t listening, VOTE THEM OUT! Unilaterally.
They gonna duck from the people and DICTATE to us? Oh I DON’T THINK SO!
VOTE EM OUT.
Lets put this into persepective.
These democrats don’t deserve to represent the people. They keep saying they haven’t read the bill, don’t know what’s in it; etc. However, when you ask a legitmate question like page 425; they say it’s not in the bill.
I ask you why would anyone elect a person who is so dumb, they haven’t read the bill, don’t know what’s in the bill; but answers your legitimate question “it isn’t in the bill”.
Sounds to dumb to serve to me.
Lets get rid of them.
And don’t tell me Obamba is brillant. He is nothing of the kind.
I know you are going to say yada, yada, yada; but smart people don’t take orders from dumb people.
Get my drift. Obama is dumb.
These Congress creeps need to be thrown out as soon as the Next election.They don’t deserve the job.
I think it’s obvious that the main reason the attendees to the previous townhalls were getting so angry is that they were clearly intended to be pep rally-photo ops for obamacare and nothing more.
COWARDLY TYRANTS
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.