Healthcare isn't free

By Mike Thayer

IOWA CITY, IA. -- Despite rain, about 300 passionate citizens gathered on the Pentacrest Wednesday night to protest President Obama’s visit to Iowa City today to brag about ObamaCare. 

Attendees came from every county in Iowa's 2nd District, which includes the following counties:  Linn, Johnson, Cedar, Muscatine, Washington, Jefferson, Louisa, Lee, Wapello, Henry, Wayne, Des Moines, Appanoose, Davis and Van Buren.

Dan Irons, from Louisa County (Southeast corner of Iowa) attended, frustrated that so many people think ObamaCare means *free* healthcare and so he wanted to express his frustration with the bill.

"Healthcare isn't free and I'm amazed that so many people are now treating it like it is."

Surprisingly, all the local media outlets covered the event.  An number of outlets outside the 2nd District were in attendance as well.

The Republican Party of Iowa (RPI) along with the University of Iowa College Republicans organized the event.  Supported by members of the Iowa City Tea Party, RPI chairman Matt Strawn aptly defined the event by saying, “Tonight isn’t about Democrats, or Republicans, or Independents. It’s about all Americans, we have to show America this (ObamaCare) is not freedom.”

Guest speakers included all four of the Republican candidates for U.S. Congress, Christopher Reed, Rob Gettemy, Steve Rathje and Mariannette Miller-Meeks. Rathje and Miller-Meeks seemed to draw the most applause from the crowd.  The Keynote speech was delivered via Skype by Congressman Mike Pence, the third ranking Republican in the U.S. House from Indiana.

“I don’t think there is any mistake that the president has chosen Iowa City in your fair state to start making his case for this government take-over of health care to the American people,” said Pence. 

“It was in the dead of the night on Sunday that Democrats in Congress and in this administration rammed through a government take-over of health care filled with individual mandates, job-killing taxes and a government-run insurance plan,” he said. “Some say we made history on Sunday night. Well, I said on the House floor that I think we broke history because we broke with our traditions of limited government, personal responsibility and the consent of the governed. The majority that will break these traditions is a majority that should be retired from Capitol Hill.”

"This fight is not over," he continued.  "We will have our day on the 1st Tuesday in November."

Countering the Stand Up 4 Freedom event, were just four counter-protesters.  The main comment coming from them was a generic, "Health care for everyone."

In drawing the event to a close, Matt Strawn said, "Remember the F-word", not the one our Vice President said, but Freedom."

In sharp contrast to bogus liberal media claims about the recent Tea Party event in Washington (and implying GOP responsibility), there were no vulgar, biggoted, racist signs displayed or comments being made.

Editor's Note:  Have you noticed that none of those liberal claims are backed up with any kind of evidence whatsoever?  You would think that in this age of boatloads of media sources in coverage, digital cameras and smartphones, that at least one of the supposed incidences of biggotry, racism, use of the "N" word would have been captured.  But no, all we have are Democrats with little credibility making unsubstantiated claims.