"You Guys Are Frauds" Chris Matthews To FreedomWorks' Max Pappas

Chris Matthews discusses FreedomWorks role behind the 'Shout-Outs' at recent town hall meetings with Max Pappas of FreedomWorks and Gerald Shea of the AFL-CIO. MSNBC's Hardball (aired: 08/06/09).

According to sourcewatch.org, "FreedomWorks, founded in 1984 and described as a 501c4 "grassroots organization," is chaired by former U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX). The organization's President is Matt Kibbe. FreedomWorks was formed in 2004 when Citizens for a Sound Economy merged with Empower America. The cause for confusion is that FreedomWorks was founded in 1984 as Citizens for a Sound Economy. The name was changed as part of the merger deal in 2004. The organization has been continuously operating since 1984.

In 2008, FreedomWorks was behind the creation of a fake grassroots web site called Angryrenter.com which rallies opposition to "the Obama Housing Bailout." The site urges people to oppose bailing out mortgage companies. The site claims to represent "Renters and responsible homeowners against a government mortgage bailout."

FreedomWorks, which was one of the lobbying groups involved in orchestrated the anti-Obama "tea parties" on April 15, 2009, in summer of 2009 began pursuing an aggressive strategy to create the image of mass public opposition to health care and clean energy reform at Congressmembers' town-hall meetings in their districts. A leaked memo from Bob MacGuffie, a volunteer with the FreedomWorks website "Tea Party Patriots," describes how members should infiltrate town hall meetings and harass and intimidate Democratic members of Congress: Spread out in the hall and try to be in the front half. The objective is to put tIle Rep on the defensive with your questions and follow-up ... You need to rock-the-boat early in the Rep's presentation. Watch for an opportunity to yell out and challenge the Rep's statements early. If he blames Bush for something or offers other excuses -- call him on it, yell back and have someone else follow-up with a shout-out ... The goal is to rattle him ...""

(http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=FreedomWorks)

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• freedomworks
• healthcare
• town
• hall
• republican
• conservative
• frauds
• max
• pappas
• dick
• armey
• gerald
• shea
• afl-cio
• chris
• matthews
• hardball
• dawgnpony

[BramSLI1]

I have a retarded (republican) uncle that pays 600 dollars a month for his health insurance and he feels that health insurance isn't a necessity. He also feels that the government should just stay out of it and let the market regulate itself. Now you see why he's retarded. If health insurance isn't a necessity then why pay so much for it? Not to mention that because of his health care costs he is now having difficulty paying his mortgage. Does anyone else think my uncle is retarded or is it me?

[crumpetbutterdrips]

The greatest success of the GOP is persuading the ordinary voter to vote AGAINST their own best interest.

It's masterful.

[mervviscious]

@BramSLI1 you are right... snd it's the same way with these stupid tea baggers...

[RightWingHunter666]

I love it when Chris rips apart a repug.

[svvmichael1]

@crumpetbutterdrips ...(voluntary) charities that ACTUALLY do help people. They don't steal from others through force of taxation. Conservatives believe in the dignity of man and the power of the individual.

[svvmichael1]

@crumpetbutterdrips ...that they aren't good enough to succeed unless the deck is rigged for them (gov't programs) creating a disturbingly harmful paternalistic relationship. Liberals have no qualms about taking things (money,property, rights) from others if they think they can use them "better". Conservatives beleieve the gov't should be small, and let people succeed and fail based on their own merit. If someone truly needs help, conservatives care for them through private..

[svvmichael1]

@crumpetbutterdrips I used to call myself a strong republican, I now call myself a strong conservative. There is a big difference between liberal and conservative. And the Tea Party is much more honorable than the misguided, uneducated Occupy people. True liberalism (from the USA perspective) is socialist. It believes the common man is not equipped to make his own decisions, that a few liberal elites should control. It is very racist, telling blacks and other minorities...

[crumpetbutterdrips]

To be honest I see no distinction between Dem and Rep and don't understand partisan politics.

Business, politics and the media have coalesced to create a monster that will do great damage to America. Both the Tea Party and the Occupy movement have tried to point this out and I hope they will realize that they're both working towards the same ideal.

[svvmichael1]

@crumpetbutterdrips Lets see if this is true. Best interest of a US citizen: Good job, low taxes, low inflation, good schools, safe borders, safe community.

Dems: High taxes which "steal" money from workers, forces business to relocate over-seas causing high unemployment, printing money by the bushel creating high inflation, back teacher's unions who oppose competition and merit pay creating poor schools, oppse the military, and supporting criminals reduced sentences....Hmmmm

[Activeassholeonpills]

This jackass from Freedomworks lied through his teeth right off the get-go. At 1:02 he crows about his organization's opposition to Bush and yet Freedomworks didn't even exist until Spring 2008! How can you tell when a Tea Party advocate is lying? Their lips are moving.

[TheRevolutionCanada]

Fuck Freedom Works

[MagnesDrachen13]

FreedomWorks wants buying between state lines. Think that will insure more people and drive costs down? Take a look at when they did something similar to credit card companies (making the state interest cap the limit on credit card interest). Once they did this, wouldn't you know it, almost every credit card company moved to the state with the highest interest cap, interest rose, profits increased, costs went up, and they lobbied to deregulate further. They want this again, just with healhcare.