That was Paul Tsongas. He regularly held public meetings around the Commonwealth with his constituents.
I haven’t heard of one since.
Why is that?
Hell, I haven’t heard of any open public meetings my Congresscritter, Mr Capuano, has held either.
I’d go if MY representatives deigned to have a public meeting where I could get to it. But I guess they are not that interested in meeting with ordinary constituents.
Hell and damn, I haven’t heard of any open public meetings with MY state rep or senator either.
Guess politicians want to hear from the likes of me only on Election Day.
Maybe the reason is that the last time I met a politician it was Charley Baker. He teared up at that event, talking about his grandfather, and then went to a debate where he promptly forgot all about it. Made me feel silly and used that I told him those tears were a sign of his humanity. Now I think they were a sign of his duplicity.
Perhaps that’s why politicians like to keep the voters at arm’s length.
Patrick says
I’ll at least say, whenever I’ve contacted Sen. Warren’s office or Sen. Markey’s office, I always get responses back. I know they’re coming from the staff, but at least someone’s reading my notes.
Capuano I don’t think I’ve heard back from.
I’ve e-mailed my State Rep & Senator and have only heard back crickets.
I contacted Councilwoman Wu about her BYOB proposal and got back a personal e-mail from her a few days later CCing her policy manager asking me to come speak at a hearing or other event to help push the initiative along.
So while I think most pols can be fairly deaf, at least some at listening (Or their staffs are!).
progressivemax says
Barney Frank had a town hall about Obamacare. A Laroche Democratic, Rachel Brown spoke (the people who compare Obama to Hitler) and Congressman Frank famously responded that arguing with her was like arguing with a coffee table.
Also reps are very good about having office hours open to anyone. The might not be public meetings with an audience, but they serve the same purpose.
My state rep and congressman hold office hours regularly. I think if you haven’t heard about them you haven’t been looking hard enough.
Christopher says
…has also had both public meetings and Congress On Your Corner events. Many state legislators hold regular office hours within their districts. Public fora are certainly a way to communicate with constituents, but not the only way. After the Town Hells over Obamacare in 2009 I can’t blame them for being a little gunshy about that kind of event.
pogo says
…Tea Party rage and it was an ugly affair. But the Congresswoman did a great job under fire and desires major kudos…unlike many of the duck and cover politicians.
Christopher says
…but based on the context I assume you mean “deserves” in the last line?
progressivemax says
Just curious about the thumbs down and was wondering if there was anything in my comments you disagreed with.
pogo says
…that you feel members of the public must adhere to office hours our elected’s have in place, in order to see them and your point about Barney’s two hall is that they are unruly and you can understand why elected’s don’t have them.
progressivemax says
Anyone can set up an appointment with their rep on beacon hill. It’s hardly a limit.
pogo says
1) Barney Frannk had a town hall and he got harassed by a Larochite. (So the implication is they are a waste of time?)
2) Reps have office hours–go see them, instead of them having to have open public meetings.
3) If you don’t seek out there office hours, it is your fault.
SomervilleTom says
I lived in Brookline (Coolidge Corner) from 1998 to 2010. During that time, Mr. Frank conducted numerous “town meetings”. He held multiple other special events. He was funny, accessible, and brutally candid.
Mr. Frank responded, personally, to the several written communications I had with him. I did not always agree with him, because he made no effort to sugar-coat his opinion. Still, his responses were fact-based, rational, and most of all very real — most certainly NOT the pablum that too many officials issue from too many PR offices.
Barney Frank knew me by name and face, as does Mike Dukakis, Denise Provost, and Deval Patrick.
Your hostility towards Mr. Frank appears to be motivated by your disagreement with his policies rather than any legitimate complaints about constituent service or accessibility.
pogo says
They had nothing to do with Barney’s comment and certainly do not reflect my disagreement with his policy positions, which are pretty much mine.
My comments were directed towards progressivemax who seems to be using that incident as an excuse for other politicians to not have public forums. I applaud Frank for having the public forum where people can make idiotic comments and I supported Frank’s response that she was as dumb as a piece of furniture.
Still scratching my head about how my above comment was “hostile” to Barney?
SomervilleTom says
Perhaps I misunderstood you. I meant only that my constituent service from Barney Frank was superb.
progressivemax says
I was not using the barney frank thing as an excuse, I was using it as a memorable example, like yourself, to point out that he had done so, like yourself. I was not implying that they should stop having open meetings,
Peter Porcupine says
…because Delahunt couldn’t be bothered. I videotaped it too, if anyone ever wanted to see the question she asked that promped his famous response. To me it wasn’t as goofy as some of the ones her male fellow travelers asked, but for whatever reason he chose to unload on her.
SomervilleTom says
Our Senators are Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey. My representative is Mike Capuano. My state Senator is Pat Jehlen, my state Rep is Denise Provost.
I find each totally accessible, and each as responsive (or more so, in the case of John Kerry while he was Senator) than their predecessors.
rcmauro says
I live in Katherine Clark’s district and she’s been doing a good job so far in terms of accessibility and communicating with her constituents.
Peter Porcupine says
..is Ed Brooke (although I DID see Kennedy drive by at close range and once had John Kerry be rude to me in the State House). And I do know Scott Brown fairly well but as a legislator more than as a Senator.
And it is nor a partisan thing as I have talked to non-GOP senators from other states for real conversations (Angus King is especially charming).
No, I think it is the toxic supermajority culture here. By the time you get to the Senate in MA nobody exists except fot the Democrat base. You don’t really have to try to reach out to the hoi polloi as long as you satisfy the clans within the Party.
Or, like they told the Blues Brothers, “We have both kinds of music – Country AND Western!”
gmoke says
I’ve had meetings with Capuano’s staff and talked, once, with Capuano at an event, not a happy experience. I know my state rep and can get a quick response from her when I need it.
My point is that there used to be more public meetings between our elected representatives and us, in my experience. There seem to be fewer now, for what are probably a variety of reasons. We should be doing something about that, at least that’s what I think.
progressivemax says
Having fewer public meetings is different than having no public meetings since Paul Tsongas.
Do you take back that statement? Thanks for the clarification 🙂
gmoke says
I stand by that statement. I have heard of no town hall type of meetings with our Senators since Tsongas did them regularly. They may have occurred but I haven’t heard about them nor been invited. I can’t recall ever hearing about a town hall meeting with Rep Capuano although I do know Barney Frank held them.
That such town hall type meetings seem, to me, to have gone out of favor with our elected representatives is something that should be noted and noticed. That’s all I am trying to do.
But then, I could be wrong about the whole thing. I have a recollection and an impression, the numbers and history may not back me up.
I wonder why people want to get so categorical about these kinds of things. “I haven’t heard of one since” does not mean that no such town hall meetings have occurred only that I can’t recall hearing about any. Has Elizabeth Warren or John Kerry or Scott Brown or Ed Markey held them? Possibly, but not that I’ve ever heard about. That’s all I wrote and that’s all I meant. You can take it any way you want to. I have no control over that. I tried to be as clear as possible but language is built on ambiguity and is an imprecise tool even in the best hands.
Peter Porcupine says
Meetings with party faithful occur but are not public meetings. I hear of DTC meetings all the time (Warren likes Yarmouth for example) but the general public doesn’t feel welcome – even the majority party, the Unenrolled.
progressivemax says
Have you checked their website?
http://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/elected-officials-to-hold-joint-office-hours-in-framingham-friday-5/9
http://www.warren.senate.gov/?p=news&id=636
progressivemax says
You are correct, that the senators have not held as many office hours in person, than local congressman. The link about was only about Markey’s staff. And Warren was only on the Cape
Congresspersons are a different story it seems