Singlestack
02-27-2013, 22:24
Wow. Went to a townhall tonite at the Louisville library, after receiving a heads up email fro Sen. Brophy. The Townhall was setup by Matt Jones and Mike Foote to hear a panel discussion on an upcoming bill to increase taxes for public education. I had an inkling how this was going to go when, before the presenters spoke there were 3 people already expressing dissatisfaction that the Monday Erie townhall had been cancelled, that there were no townhalls on the 4 gun bills, and our reps seemed to be dodging us on this issue. One of the questioners asked how many people were there for the 4 bills, and about 80% of them (including me) raised there hands. Anyway, the education discussion went well and people were polite, but some of the questions were gun related (concealed carry by teachers, trained police on site, etc).
Once the education portion started at 7:30, the room filled with the ton of people waiting outside in the hallway. I may be off, but it seemed like 150-200 in the room, with about half standing. From what I could tell, 2 of those there were in favor of the bills and the rest opposed. In attendance was one of the senior Magpul guys - and yes, driving the "Magpul van"! He made a very eloquent financial case to the tune of 600 jobs and $89M leaving the state.
Many questions were asked of Sen. Jones, and his canned answer was nearly always "everything is a balancing act". I was the first to be called. I let Rep Foote know that many were disappointed how he voted, and would remember that in his next election (lots of cheers, not surprisingly). Then I asked Jones how he would vote on 1224, 1226, 1228, and 1229 and his response was "I am here to hear from my constituents", without committing to anything. Fantastic comments by many, including a very well-spoken democrat attorney who said "we democrats often get it wrong when it comes to constitutional rights". I could see a sour look on both rep's faces then. The Louisville police chief was there also, who fielded a question about enforcement, basically saying the laws were unenforceable.
Frankly, Jones consistent dodges have me thinking that he is a solid yes vote on all four bills. However, I'm glad I went and they know there are some pretty fired up citizens. Anyone else there?
Once the education portion started at 7:30, the room filled with the ton of people waiting outside in the hallway. I may be off, but it seemed like 150-200 in the room, with about half standing. From what I could tell, 2 of those there were in favor of the bills and the rest opposed. In attendance was one of the senior Magpul guys - and yes, driving the "Magpul van"! He made a very eloquent financial case to the tune of 600 jobs and $89M leaving the state.
Many questions were asked of Sen. Jones, and his canned answer was nearly always "everything is a balancing act". I was the first to be called. I let Rep Foote know that many were disappointed how he voted, and would remember that in his next election (lots of cheers, not surprisingly). Then I asked Jones how he would vote on 1224, 1226, 1228, and 1229 and his response was "I am here to hear from my constituents", without committing to anything. Fantastic comments by many, including a very well-spoken democrat attorney who said "we democrats often get it wrong when it comes to constitutional rights". I could see a sour look on both rep's faces then. The Louisville police chief was there also, who fielded a question about enforcement, basically saying the laws were unenforceable.
Frankly, Jones consistent dodges have me thinking that he is a solid yes vote on all four bills. However, I'm glad I went and they know there are some pretty fired up citizens. Anyone else there?