Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 03:05 pm
Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney really are two peas in a pod. In September 2011, Ryan had 5 people kicked out and three others arrested at his town hall because he didn’t like their questions.
Last Fall, Paul Ryan adopted a novel approach to avoiding questions that he didn’t want to answer on his budget and the Bush tax cuts. He made his town halls PPV events. Rep. Ryan actually charged people to attend his town halls.
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Ryan’s pay wall didn’t stop protesters from attending and asking him questions about how he was going to create jobs and the Bush tax cuts, but when Rep. Ryan didn’t like the questions, he had the questioners removed or in some cases arrested.
Here is the video:
As I reported in September 2011,
The protesters got involved when Rep. Ryan tried to claim that our job crisis is directly related to our debt crisis. One person stood up and asked, “Our debt is out of control because of the tax cuts you’re giving…Our unemployment in 2003 was 6.2% before the tax cuts went through. Now our unemployment rate is 9.1%. What are you doing to create jobs, Congressman?”
This lady was shown the door. She was soon followed by another gentleman. Another woman stood up while Ryan was speaking and said, “You won’t talk to us. How can we give our opinions when you refuse to talk to us?” I think you can probably guess what happened to her. When someone stood up in the back and asked, “Where are the jobs, Ryan?” He mentioned corporations, and was escorted out.
An older man got angry when Ryan mentioned entitlement programs, and said that he paid into unemployment, Medicare, and Social Security for 50 years, and got himself kicked out.
The people were not only kicked out of Paul Ryan’s town hall, but three people were also arrested. When turning his town halls into PPV events didn’t keep the protesters away, Rep. Ryan did the next best thing. He kicked them out, and in some cases, they were arrested. These people paid money to ask Paul Ryan a question, but when the Congressman didn’t like their questions, he had them kicked out.
This is why Mitt Romney liked Paul Ryan from the start. When Mitt looks at Ryan, he sees a young, poorer version of himself. Like Romney, Ryan can’t stand the heat, and has no tolerance for having to answer to the people.
The media will deliver their usual glowing personal portraits of Romney’s running mate, but the truth is already out there. Romney has chosen a junior elitist whose goal is to fundamentally and permanently redistribute the wealth to the richest Americans.
Dissent isn’t welcome, and if you disagree too loudly with Paul Ryan’s vision for America, you’ll find yourself expelled or arrested.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
