Last time our representative Mo Brooks was back home, he had a “public meeting” - but you had to be a member of the local tea party organization to get in. Not even the press were allowed. And even if you were a member, you were handed Meeting Guidelines (PDF) - no shouting, no recording devices, must be a tea party member or guest, etc. And to add insult to injury, this was held in a public library.
Then again, this is the Congressman who went on national TV and said: “…(the new proposal) will allow insurance companies to require people who have higher health care costs to contribute more to the insurance pool. That helps offset all these costs, thereby reducing the cost to those people who lead good lives, they’re healthy, they’ve done the things to keep their bodies healthy. And right now, those are the people — who’ve done things the right way — that are seeing their costs skyrocketing.” (cite)
What’s even more ludicrous is that he represents a state (Alabama) which has among the highest incidences of the fifty states for many pre-existing conditions (e.g., heart disease, COPD, diabetes, asthma, arthritis, etc.). He’s throwing his own constituents (and, very likely, a lot of the people who voted for him) under the bus with that quote.