SPEAKER PELOSI.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's assertion that the people demonstrating and voicing their opinions at Town Halls around the country are being "un-American" is derisive, to say the least. The demonstrators have the right to engage in public protests and to demand answers to questions on an important topic as Health Care that directly affects their lives and the lives of their families. That is purely the American way.

In many cases, the meetings have not been organized well, and they became rowdy when those who were supposed to be on the stage to answer questions were missing; and even if they were present, they did not handle the fielding of questions well or correctly. It (fielding) was haphazard and disorganized.

The reason why there is a Congress is to have issues resolved in an orderly fashion; and arguments will determine where the facts of a matter are and be explored to get to the bottom to find the right solutions. They, the Senators and Representatives, have taken the Health Care issue out of the Congress chambers into Town Hall settings, and expecting to get the same results, the orderliness that must prevail at these meetings. That scenario is impossible under the present circumstances.

Demonstrations must be left outside; placards and megaphones are not to be allowed on the floor to disrupt speakers, who must first explain how the meetings are to be conducted before they start. There must also be, at least, an ample amount of security present to restrict any form of lawlessness. If a meeting is going to be held in any public format, such as a Town Hall gathering, there must a presence of security guards or even uniformed police. Without that, there will be commotion, as emotions are being bandied around.

Madam Speaker must therefore conform to orderliness and free speech, as they exist on the floors of Congress, and not to Un-American statements.