| 9/6/2009 6:00:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article |
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| Congresswoman Michele Bachmann spoke at a town hall on health care reform last Thursday in Lake Elmo. • Derrick Knutson/Review |
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| Woodbury resident Marsha Kelly, at right, shared her views on a sign outside the town hall in Lake Elmo. |
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Bachmann addresses health care during Lake Elmo visit
Derrick Knutson
Review Staff
A public health care forum hosted by Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann in Lake Elmo last Thursday elicited some vociferous exchanges from her supporters and detractors.
Bachmann, who represents Minnesota's sixth district, was routinely booed and cheered throughout the forum at Oak-Land Junior High School. The auditorium of the school was filled to capacity with people there to hear Bachmann speak. The rest of the crowd quickly filled an overflow room in an adjacent cafeteria where they could watch the event on a television. Derek Berg, principal at Oak-Land Junior High, estimated that 750 people were at the forum.
Texas Republican Congressman Michael Burgess, who is a medical doctor, also took part in forum. District 52A state representative Bob Dettmer joined Bachmann and Burgess.
During her introduction, Bachmann said that the focus of the town hall was health care and, as a short icebreaker, quipped about the recent signing of Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre and the 2009 PGA Championship that took place in Chaska.
Protesters who appeared to dislike the congresswoman's sidebar from topic at hand then shouted "health care" from the audience.
Even with the jeering, Bachmann held her composure and kept the forum moving along in an organized manner, listening to people on both sides of the issue.
After her opening statement, Bachmann addressed national health care - an issue that she and the Obama administration differ on. Bachmann has been an outspoken critic of President Barack Obama's health care plan.
"The question is, will we go down a road where all of you have more control over your health care, more decision making authority, where we can actually reduce costs, or will we take a road where government has more authority over our health care, and where government has a say over our health care decisions?" she said to the crowd.
Bachmann added, "Let's not destroy the greatest health care system the world has ever known."
That comment elicited loud cheering from the crowd, intermingled with a light course of boos.
Bachmann said the nation is in a precarious position in terms of the national budget, adding "just earlier this year, the White House predicted that we would be $7 trillion in debt in the next 10 years."
She went on to say that those figures have been revised by the Congressional Budget Office, and could rise to as high as $9 trillion to $10 trillion.
Protesters and supporters speak out
Woodbury resident Marsha Kelly, who was holding a sign outside of the junior high that read "Bachmann loves big insurance companies," criticized the congresswoman's views on health care.
"Her comments on health care have been so far out of left field; well, I guess so far out of right field, she doesn't even make sense on the issues," she said.
Eileen Weber, a Denmark Township resident and registered nurse, said health care reform isn't something people should be afraid of.
"I'm here to try and counteract the fear around health care reform," she said. "I think the time is now, and I'm very concerned that we're not getting the kind of information that we need."
Afton resident Charlotte Zabawa, who is also a registered nurse, said Bachmann should take into account what residents of Minnesota and the nation have to say when it comes to health care.
"Congresswoman Bachmann says she listens to God, and I just hope that she would listen to nurses, and listen to people," she said. "This country is really, really hurting because of the way we mess up health care. It's time to stop doing what doesn't work, and start doing what does work."
Blaine resident Trent Hubbard was among Bachmann's supporters at the forum. He agreed with her views on health care, and said Americans might have to deal with a loss of individual freedoms if a universal health care plan is instituted.
Derrick Knutson can be reached at dknutson@lillienews.com or at 651-748-7825.
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