Pat Buchanan's sources are certainly misinformed. First of all, the town hall was not sponsored by Congressman Kathy Castor. She was there to give a report on the bill. The event was hosted by State Rep. Betty Reed and the SEIU. They were not "shipped in there" as Joe just said. They were hosts of the event. And those manning the door were our local Young Democrats, not union members! Next, those who opposed reform were at the venue when I arrived at 4 PM, and I was the first one there. I was in charge of the sign-in and information table at the door. Rep. Reed had asked for a police presence at the event, but we had to call in more law enforcement because when the venue was filled to capacity, the anti-reformers stormed the door. Those folks claimed to local media that they were 912ers (?), which is apparently a Glenn Beck following. We also heard that Rush Limbaugh was encouraging people to attend the event. The Chair of the Republican Party in Hillsborough County sent out at least one email with talking points straight from the "teabagger" web sites. We also heard that the Republican Party from surrounding counties encouraged their members to go to the event. Susan Smith

Hillsborough County Democratic Party

I never went inside the event, but instead stayed outside to help manage the crowds. What I saw on display out there was racist, anti-immigrant ignorance, for the most part. These idiots actually believe that they will die if we get healthcare reform!

We were told that we were "not Americans, we were Democrats," and more than one angry man yelled at supporters of reform telling them to "go back to their own country."

As many of my friends said, if I hadn't seen what happened with my own eyes, I would never have believed it.

UPDATE: Just wanted everyone to see an email I just received from "babsannod@gmail.com" Here's the content: