Slimy tactics from David Dreier

I got a phone call this evening inviting me to "participate" (you'll see why I put the word in scare quotes in a moment) in a conference-call town-hall meeting with David Dreier. It struck me as a bit odd that I would get this call, not only because I'm a registered Democrat, but also because I'd gotten no notice, and usually these "town-hall meeting" calls are announced in advance (and usually you call them, they don't call you). Out of curiosity I decided to stay on the line and listen in.

After a recorded intro from Dreier and a briefing from the phone company ("If you'd like to ask a question, press zero" etc.) I was hooked in to the "meeting" which was already under way, and had been apparently for some time now. There were no preliminaries. I was dumped straight into the middle of a discussion going on between Dreier and someone else who was explaining how mandated health insurance can actually put people's lives in danger, or something like that. I wasn't entirely clear on the reasoning not having been privy to the first part of the conversation, but Dreier sounded as if he'd just had a revelation. "Really? I had no idea things were this bad. You say that it actually costs 1000 lives a year?" The other guy responded, "Yes, I have the documentation right here. I can send you a copy if you like." To which Dreier responded, "Please do. I had no idea things were this bad. Thank you for bringing this to my attention."

I wish I had had the presence of mind to record the exchange because it was pretty transparent to me that it was scripted. There were none of the conversational stumbles and false starts that invariably occur in a real impromptu conversation. Every word from both Dreier and the other guy flowed smoothly and without hesitation, to say nothing of the fact that no politician in his right mind would ever endorse a claim that he'd never heard of before because if it turned out to be false he could end up looking like a fool. The whole thing was a sham, but it was a pretty well done sham, and there is no doubt in my mind that many -- perhaps most -- people who heard it would have fallen for it.

Someone should call Dreier out on this.