Went to a Grassley town hall today. The guy won't give a straight answer

[rurallib]

He was confronted by several in the audience on allowing a vote on a SCOTUS nominee. We got several versions of a lecture on the process. When asked directly if he would let a vote take place we got one more lecture on Obama's role and the role of the Senate and how he and Leahy and Schumer work together.

Some young folks when asking kept interrupting to turn him back to their question and he gave them a lecture on manners and how Q&A worked. One young lady was really frustrated.

He did accidentally say there would be no vote on the TPP before the election. It may be in the local paper. My friend and I looked at each other in amazement.

Other subjects included climate change caused by humans (evasive answer), social security (lecture on the current state of the system and how Reagan handled it), on and on - no answers just some general answers sort of related to the question.

When he was called on his non-answers (about 4 times) he got into a snit, said he was answering and then continued his mental wanderings.

Probably great theater if you're a Republican.

[madaboutharry]

1. They're caught in their own bullshit.

They know they look like Jackasses.

[rurallib]

2. and to be honest - I doubt a one of them gives a fuck

they need to lose elections, but our populace fed corporate news (and NPR) never sees beyond the shallow headlines.

[cascadiance]

3. If Bernie Sanders wins, they WILL approve Obama's nominee in December.

Mark it down. Unless Obama goes completely against my expectations and nominates a total radical, they know they would be doomed if they don't approve Obama's pick, and then give Bernie a chance to nominate another pick instead of Obama. And they know Obama's pick will likely be less of a problem for them than Bernie's pick later.

They won't approve anyone before the election in hopes that a Republican congress and president are elected, but that doesn't seem too likely.

They will do that if they don't get too busy trying to get TPP passed then with Obama to sign it, as opposed to Bernie vetoing it in 2017.

[daleanime]

4. +1

[saltpoint]

5. Grassley is kind of a footstool.

He doesn't seem sentient enough to be human.

I've never thought of him as much of a thinker. But of course a footstool doesn't have to do any thinking.

[rurallib]

6. and that gets him a lot of votes

[saltpoint]

7. Yep. He kind of slips into that Green Acres

thing he does and I guess Republicans lap it up.

It's a damn shame we lost the Senate. We need it back as soon as possible.

[progressoid]

9. That's the scary part.

I can't believe the support he gets from voters in this state.

He'll be 83 this year. Got to think that his diminished capacity and his increasingly crazy views will have an effect during the election.

[IADEMO2004]

8. In 2012 I thought he had a diminished mental capacity.

Answered fewer questions and promised to get back to people with answers later. Years before he could explain his position on an issue. We followed his town hall meetings in 2009 & 2010 pushing him on the a ACA but it was a waste of time. His last words before the final vote. "I won't vote against my party"

[progressoid]

10. Is this it?

Edit. Oops, I see these videos were from Tuesday and you saw him Thursday. Seems like he's getting the same push back everywhere.



http://whotv.com/2016/02/16/grassley-will-take-an-obama-justice-nomination-one-step-at-a-time/

and

http://www.kcrg.com/content/news/369035431.html

[rurallib]

11. looks almost exactly like the one I went to

different room same words.

He could have saved us a lot of time and taken out some ads where there is an voice over that says "And now a message from your Senator, Chuck Grassley" followed by 30 seconds of an extended middle finger.

[faye]

12. Pasture

His town hall gatherings are like Chuck out in his pasture tending his sheeple . Boring.

[rurallib]

13. I would say it was like we were in two different worlds

there was palpable tension in the audience. But Grassley seemed to be floating over the room unaware that there was concern, almost as if he had taken a drug or something to put him in another world.

[47of74]

14. That's where he needs to go.

It's important for the people of Iowa to vote him out there this fall.

[Bluzmann57]

15. One problem

Who is there to take his place? Grassley is as close to undefeatable as any Senator anywhere, unfortunately. And I don't see a strong Democratic candidate to beat him right now. My suggestion is Tom Vilsack but who knows if he even wants to try?