So I went to see Halvorson. She is a condescending witch. I asked her with us devaluing the currency by printing money and China and Russia wanting to get out of the dollar and all the debt we owe China and the burdens on taxpayers, how in the world she could vote for this disastrous bill. She never answered that. First (when I asked her about the provision requiring us to purchase insurance or face jail) she "explained" that this was not forcing us to buy insurance, it just meant if you didn't pay the taxes (now, I tried to get her to answer whether the taxes were the same as the bill, which is a tax in a way, and I said, "So the tax is a different thing than the requirement to insurance?" She said, "Yes." in a hesitant way). Then we got on the Constitution because I said it was unconstitutional, and she whipped out a Constitution book and pointed to the general welfare clause as the justification. I said, "That's not what the Founders meant." And she kind of cut me off and then we agreed to disagree. Then I brought up the fiscal failures of the government. I said that the government couldn't manage Social Security, Medicare, the Veteran's Hospitals, or the Post Office, to which she gave me a reply about how she represents veterans and they are happy with their health care. I disagreed, saying a lot of my family members were veterans and were unsatisified with the VA hospitals. Now, I slightly exaggerated on that because she made me so mad, I wanted to see her response, and that was to basically offer me a bribe: if any of my family that served in the military needed help with medical benefits, call her. I didn't buy it. Then I said that this bill opened a door for future congresses to expand it, and she nodded. This was after discussing that I work at McDonald's, can't afford insurance and don't want it, especially gov't run insurance. She then said I could buy any plan I wanted. Before I get to the end of this creepy encounter, I want to say that when she asked me where I was from, I said, "I'm from Streator." Then she said that she'd been there not long ago, and I said, "Yes, I would have come seen you, but I was attending a Tea Party that day." Her initial reaction was, "Oh, sounds like much more fun than I had that day" (this being 9/12 when I was in Lockport), but her eyes kind of got squinty. Then I said, "I have called, I have written, I have e-mailed, and I have protested outside your office in Joliet, and I still get no straight answers on things." Then she nods placatingly and says, "I know. Well, that's why I'm here now, so I can understand you." She talked to me like I was five years old or something, but the kicker was the way it ended. See, she only allowed us five minutes per person. So this guy, Giddeon, who looked so slimy even in a suit that he could be a servant of Satan, came to get us when our time was up. After having the discussion about the insurance I don't want, she goes into this thing about "thousands of people are dying" (during which time I looked at her, perplexed), and then she said that she wasn't sure how the bill would go in the Senate, but she didn't think pre-existing conditions should exempt people from getting insurance. I said, "Neither do I." She interrupted with this just before Giddeon interrupted us to cut me off: "Oh, you don't [mock sigh of astonishment], because it sounded like you--" She was going to say "want people to die," I just know it, but Giddeon said, "Sorry to interrupt, but it's time to go, however, it seems like an interesting conversation you were having." Ack, he was such a sleazeballish person, I almost said, "You know, you look like a politician." And he did, with his phoney baloney smile. He and this one girl she had working for her were just as condescending as Debbie. So I get out and this guy from New Lenox asked how it went and I told him it went badly, and he said she gave him the runaround, then a guy from Seneca came up (all of us had been blasting Halvorson before we got called in) and goes, "I have to ask. How did it go?" I said, "Badly. She's very condescending." It was a nightmare, but anything to get that slimey smirk off her face, I guess. And that is how my experience went. Sorry this is so long (I just got back and am itching to get it all down).