Posted on 08/30/2009 6:51:41 AM PDT by Wpin
Since early February, we’ve seen increasing numbers of militant right-wing activists attending public meetings across the country targeting Members of Congress and President Obama. Now in the August recess, the “tea-bagger” protesters and right-wing activists are showing up in larger numbers with a mission to be as disruptive as possible in the hopes of rattling Members of Congress and halting health care reform through pure spectacle and obstruction. Our response is shaped by 3 things:
* Our targets are Members of Congress who must vote “yes” for this bill. Our targets are not the right-wing extremists. The targets of these attacks are Members of Congress. Those Members are also our targets. We need to use these attacks as opportunities to work with the Members in ways that build our relationship in the field and bring us together as allies in health care reform. Members may be more receptive to partnering with us if they know we will help them combat the opposition. * Our core message is effective, and we should always come back to it. Our campaign plan has always anticipated opposition. No matter what the right-wingers bring up to distract the debate, we should always circle back to our key message. We are on the side of quality, affordable health care for everyone, and we are against turning over health care reform to the insurance companies and lobbyists who got us into this mess to begin with. We need to educate the press and the public that the protesters are aligned with the corporate lobbyists and insurance companies who are trying to stop reform.
(Excerpt) Read more at hcfan.3cdn.net ...
I’ve seen dozens of ads on Craigslist for workers for left-wing activist groups - NONE for conservative groups. Conservatives don’t have to pay people to protest. The left’s charges of Astroturfing by conservatives are ridiculous lies.
• They will be loud:
• They will paint a picture:
• They will look bigger than they are:
• They will seek confrontation:
Here we have exactly what ACORN has been doing all along. They wrote the play book. Now...they're trying to say that's what WE are doing? LOL.
sw
You got that right.
From the PDF at the link....
Who are these people?
The people who show up are far right-wing ideologues recruited by paid organizers. Much of this recruitment and organizing is funded by industry lobbyists and public relations firms to engage radical right-wing groups. Many of these groups are motivated by far right ideology in general - not by health care as an issue. They are held together by a common vision of the world that centers on defeating Obama and his agenda. We can expect to see anti-abortion groups, pro-gun groups, insurance company employees (mandated by employers to come out), militia groups, and antiimmigration groups.
What are their goals in turning out disruptive mobs?
Their goal is to stop Obama, influence the media, and scare Members of Congress into thinking that there is more resistance to health care reform than really exists. The attendees are not reflective of the middle or average Republican Party member. Insurance industry lobbyists and public relations firms recruit mostly right-wing extremists who are willing to employ militant tactics in order to demonize Obama by tapping into fear and anger in the electorate. The fear comes from both aggressive communications tactics and rhetoric: anti-tax, anti-abortion, anti-immigration, and other themes that resonate with the farthest right wing of their party.
What is the strategy of the lobbyists and right-wingers who are orchestrating these protests?
The most important thing to remember about this type of mobilization is that it is foremost a media strategy, not an organizing strategy. These angry mobs are not trying to persuade Members of Congress or the folks who are
attending the event about their point of view. Their goal is to disrupt the event as much as possible in order to:
1. Prevent our message from getting out.
2. Scare Members of Congress into silence and submission.
3. Paint a picture for the media that conveys widespread disapproval for health care reform in order to influence the narrative.
4. Create as much tension as possible at these events so that the average spectator is completely turned off and disengages totally from this issue.
What can we expect them to do?
• They will be loud: They will “Yell, stand up and shout out, and rattle” the Members of Congress. They will be disruptive and not follow the agenda. They won’t wait for an opening to speak. They will just interrupt and shout
from the minute the event opens until it ends.
• They will paint a picture: They will carry a lot of signs. They will have gimmicks and props to get attention from the MOCs and from the media.
• They will look bigger than they are: They will spread out and distribute their signs widely. They will also get in front of any TV camera or press people in order to make sure the story that is reported is their story.
• They will seek confrontation: The right-wing protesters will foster confrontation at every turn because that’s what draws media and distracts the public. They will use any means to do this including abusive language,
arrests, props, and physical violence. Be prepared.
How should we prepare to encounter the right wing protesters at MOC events?
1. Contact friendly MOCs and let them know you are coming to make sure our side is heard and that the event is positive. Provide constructive support for Members of Congress who are holding public events to promote health care reform by turning out constituents and anticipating problems ahead of time. Ask the Member’s staff what would be most helpful and talk through a strategy for making sure the right messages don’t get drowned out by chaotic protesters.
2. Inoculate your staff and your volunteers by telling them what to expect and what purpose lies behind the right-wing demonstrations. The more that the attendees know what to expect; the less startled they will be by
the irrational tone and militancy of the protesters.
3. Bring more people than the other side has. Their side will be smaller but noisier. You must bring enough people to drown them out and to cover all our bases so as to marginalize their disruptive tactics. You don’t want to get into a screaming match, but it must be obvious to everyone—including press—that you represent the
majority.
4. Arrive earlier than the other side does. We need to stack our folks in the front to create a wall around the Member, and we need to stake out the best spots for visibility and signs. Reconnaissance on the venue and an
understanding of the staging will be important here. Make sure you do your homework so you can position your folks most effectively.
5. Be more visible than the other side. Bring more signs and leaflets, and whenever possible, post your signs all over the place so that you visually out-perform the other side. Make sure you have people holding signs in every
place where a TV camera is likely to be and that next to every right wing sign, there’s one of your signs with your message.
6. Have a real plan for the media. Remember, this is a communications strategy that the right wing is using and our goal is to stop them from hijacking and changing the message and tone of these events. Assign 3-5 people
to speak with the reporters who attend and make sure the reporters understand the scope and message of the event. If you let the media just report on what they see, they will invariably focus on the mayhem. That is a far juicer story than affordability and the public health insurance option. Don’t wait for the reporter to approach you. You must approach the reporters and be assertive in shaping the narrative that they write. Have someone assigned to greeting the media or checking in media as they arrive. That way you will know who they are and be able to work with them both during the event and afterwards. Also, plan to record both the events you attend and the events you organize. TV stations will use amateur footage to round out their stories, and the other side is recording and posting video online. We need to be able to give the press video of successful events too.
How should we interact/what do we say to the other side?
1. Do not debate on their “policy” points. Remember, they are seeking a platform to distort the truth about reform by making health care about abortion, rationing, euthanasia, etc. Rather than try to reply with the truth
(which won’t move them anyway) we should respond with our message and at every turn re-focus the agenda on communicating with the Member of Congress.
2. Interrupt them when they get disruptive and refocus the meeting: Line up a number of people who feel comfortable interrupting and prepare them with statements like:
• “Excuse me, I came today to listen to Representative XXX explain how this bill is going to make health care more affordable for me and my family. We’re being gouged by insurance companies that just want to make more profits while we struggle to keep up with premiums and co-pays. Representative, how are you going to fix that?”
• “I’m retired and can’t afford my prescription drugs because I’m on a fixed income. Representative, how is this bill going to affect me?”
• “I want to hear the Representative speak. He’s the one voting on the bill. Representative, how will this bill help people who already have insurance at work?”
• “What I’m worried about is how we’re going to keep the insurance companies from continuing to charge people more for being sick and keep them from taking away coverage when we need it most. What’s the plan for that?”
3. Don’t get into a shouting match with them. Instead, prep people on our side to keep raising the questions that we want answered. Repetition is the key. We need to arm our side with questions that play to the strength
of our message and make sure we keep bringing them up over and over so that the press recognizes those central themes. We should also phrase those questions strategically to help move the message.
• “Over the last XX years, insurance company profits have risen XXX %; in this bill you would regulate insurance companies so that they can no longer deny people with pre-existing conditions and would have to play by fair rules. Isn’t that right, Representative XX?”
• “Isn’t it true that this bill would guarantee everyone a choice of public health insurance option that will lower cost overall in the system?”
4. Address the MOC directly with a positive message:
Remember, these Members need cover and they are getting beaten up by right wing zealots in these meetings. We want to let the Member know that we appreciate his efforts to hear constituents and that we, the majority, agree with him.
5. We should demonstrate that we are the majority by chanting: When the other side gets too loud, we should shut them down with chants that counter their message like “Health Care Can’t Wait!” and “Health Care Delayed
is Health Care Denied” and prep people to chant at key points when the other side gets most disruptive.
6. Follow up with the Member one-on-one: This experience may have been trying for your MOC. Make sure that you thank him and that you let him know that the majority is with him. He needs to know that we will provide
cover and support him at every turn for his leadership on this issue.
Lenin pioneered the method: accuse your adversary of what you yourself are doing. It creates confusion and anger, putting the opposition on the defensive and distracting them from promoting their own agenda.
“Described as: an expert when it comes to Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare issues.” and hamburgers by the looks!
THEY accuse US of organizing, yet here’s a step by step INSTRUCTING them on how to organize..
ROFL..(I gotta get up and walk away for a minute before I bust a gut)..
“7 and a half Trillion doesn’t buy a hell of a lot!
7 and a half Trillion doesn’t buy a thing!
But give it to us every hour
Forty hours every week
And that’s enough for us to be
Living like a King!”
of course the truth was printed in a retraction on page E-38 directly under the obituaries../s (but not by much)
Your right, She does not appear to have missed many meals recently.
If I was a congressman, I wouldn’t like people calling me a target.
I haven’t looked at it closely but you can download the new SEIU bylaws here. It may prove interesting. (passed by 93%)
... and apparently a frequent flyer at all-you-can-eat buffets.
You should worry about the private meetings we're attending that your fascist union and parasite thugs aren't able to disrupt, Jeff.
You should worry about the viability of a liberal life in the city, when the conservatives in the country refuse or are unable to supply you with food and redistributed income, Jeff.
You should see what whirlwind your loyalties reap over the next 11 years, Jeff. There isn't much left of your clique by then, Jeff, except preserved photographs, crumbling newspaper fragments, and generations of unblinking contempt.
Well, as stated before “What do you call a Former Community Organizer who gets Pi$$ed when Communities Organize?”
These people are ‘wasting’ time and effort going against the R’s as it is the dissident D’s that are holding things up, PLUS if no R’s vote for it they can’t flip it over on them.....we know that if the vote were 700-300 and 2 r’s voted with the 700, when TSHTF those 2 R’s will have to bear the brunt of criticism and blame — and when the sheeple sit down after being pummelled with this misinformation they will again become docile and “they” can ram 30 more bills down our throat.
ENOUGH ALREADY!!
In the future, Community Organizer Boards controlled by the Health Care Czar will determine who is obese.
Those selected as obese will be sent for treatment.
Some people who appear to be obese will be designated "large sized but healthy" and will not be included in the selections.
Remember, tax dollars are continuously needed to keep these folk "healthy".
I wonder if they are listed as a nonprofit org in Mi?
In Michigan it is illegal for a nonprofit to require or engage in promoting political activity!
A recipient of all 3 during various times of her life?
LOL. And they are so clueless. I WISH someone was paying me!
Pretty broad brush that you're painting with! I know a lot of "old people" who are against this administration's policies and spending - my 86 year old father for one!
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