U.S. Rep. Ed Markey speaks during the open community forum held at the Memorial Building in Framingham.
The MetroWest Daily News
Sun Feb 03, 2008, 11:35 PM EST
FRAMINGHAM -
Five policemen responded to U.S. Rep. Ed Markey's open forum the Memorial Building yesterday after the politically charged crowd got rowdy, discussing impeachment and whether President George W. Bush helped orchestrate the 9/11 attacks.
No arrests were made, but tempers boiled and ``Shut ups!'' were shouted inside the Blumer Community Room with its standing-room only crowd.
The audience nearly got hostile when David Pierce of Arlington brought up the Sept. 11 commission and the whether the Twin Towers were taken down in attacks ``perpetuated by government.''
He called for an impartial independent criminal investigation into 9/11 as audience members cheered.
Markey, a veteran congressman who represents Framingham, Natick and part of Wayland, said it's ``incontrovertibly true'' the terrorist-piloted planes caused the attacks.
``I do not believe President Bush participated in any conspiracy to bring down those towers,'' he said.
Some in the audience loudly shot back, ``That's a lie'' and ``Not true.''
A few argued with each other, shouting back and forth, ``Shut up!''
Officials called police as a Malden man, Phil Troudman, passionately argued in support of a conspiracy theory of controlled demolition that lays blame squarely on Bush's administration.
``I'm willing to go and take another look at it,'' Markey conceded.
The war in Iraq and impeachment for Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were other hot-button issues of the day.
``It is unfathomable to me why we will not start impeachment,'' said Carol Coakley of Millis, who works at Framingham State College. ``If we don't do this, we'll lose our chance to restore our reputation in the world.''
Bush, ``who still has a `My way or the highway' sign on his desk,'' has written a blank check for war spending while the national economy spirals, Markey admitted.
During an eight-year reign, the president has overseen a ``sick care system, not a health care system,'' made the No Child Left Behind Act ``No School Left Standing,'' and ``demoralized'' the Republican Party, the congressman said.
But the focus now should be on electing a Democratic president - either Sen. Hillary Clinton or Sen. Barack Obama - who will take oath next January and ``on 95 percent of the issues, there's going to be a change,'' Markey argued.
The congressman said he supports censuring over impeachment because the proceedings would ``pretty much shut down the Congress from any business'' and therefore be the wrong course of action.
Members of the audience - still jumping to have their questions fielded three hours after the session started - groaned loudly when the forum was cut short at 3:30 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday so the room could be cleaned.
``The custodians were only paid to stay until 2,'' Selectman John Stasik explained. ``It's going to cut into their game time.''
Constituents asked about everything from Bush's economic stimulus package to hydrogen energy to ``think globally, act locally.''
Larry Herson, commander of MetroWest's chapter of Jewish War Veterans, asked about Framingham being ``under siege'' with SMOC's lawsuit against the town on the table and whether the congressman could help with negotiations.
``It's almost a classically local issue,'' Markey said. ``It is not Washington to tell Framingham how to resolve this issue. It's very complex.''
``I saw a lot of passion in the people, I saw a lot of discussion - it was an exciting group,'' Westborough's Kate Donaghue, a member of the Massachusetts Democratic Party, said at the forum's end. ``It's exciting that so many people want to take part in the democratic process.''
Danielle Ameden can be reached at 508-634-7521 or dameden@cnc.com.
No arrests were made, but tempers boiled and ``Shut ups!'' were shouted inside the Blumer Community Room with its standing-room only crowd.
The audience nearly got hostile when David Pierce of Arlington brought up the Sept. 11 commission and the whether the Twin Towers were taken down in attacks ``perpetuated by government.''
He called for an impartial independent criminal investigation into 9/11 as audience members cheered.
Markey, a veteran congressman who represents Framingham, Natick and part of Wayland, said it's ``incontrovertibly true'' the terrorist-piloted planes caused the attacks.
``I do not believe President Bush participated in any conspiracy to bring down those towers,'' he said.
Some in the audience loudly shot back, ``That's a lie'' and ``Not true.''
A few argued with each other, shouting back and forth, ``Shut up!''
Officials called police as a Malden man, Phil Troudman, passionately argued in support of a conspiracy theory of controlled demolition that lays blame squarely on Bush's administration.
``I'm willing to go and take another look at it,'' Markey conceded.
The war in Iraq and impeachment for Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were other hot-button issues of the day.
``It is unfathomable to me why we will not start impeachment,'' said Carol Coakley of Millis, who works at Framingham State College. ``If we don't do this, we'll lose our chance to restore our reputation in the world.''
Bush, ``who still has a `My way or the highway' sign on his desk,'' has written a blank check for war spending while the national economy spirals, Markey admitted.
During an eight-year reign, the president has overseen a ``sick care system, not a health care system,'' made the No Child Left Behind Act ``No School Left Standing,'' and ``demoralized'' the Republican Party, the congressman said.
But the focus now should be on electing a Democratic president - either Sen. Hillary Clinton or Sen. Barack Obama - who will take oath next January and ``on 95 percent of the issues, there's going to be a change,'' Markey argued.
The congressman said he supports censuring over impeachment because the proceedings would ``pretty much shut down the Congress from any business'' and therefore be the wrong course of action.
Members of the audience - still jumping to have their questions fielded three hours after the session started - groaned loudly when the forum was cut short at 3:30 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday so the room could be cleaned.
``The custodians were only paid to stay until 2,'' Selectman John Stasik explained. ``It's going to cut into their game time.''
Constituents asked about everything from Bush's economic stimulus package to hydrogen energy to ``think globally, act locally.''
Larry Herson, commander of MetroWest's chapter of Jewish War Veterans, asked about Framingham being ``under siege'' with SMOC's lawsuit against the town on the table and whether the congressman could help with negotiations.
``It's almost a classically local issue,'' Markey said. ``It is not Washington to tell Framingham how to resolve this issue. It's very complex.''
``I saw a lot of passion in the people, I saw a lot of discussion - it was an exciting group,'' Westborough's Kate Donaghue, a member of the Massachusetts Democratic Party, said at the forum's end. ``It's exciting that so many people want to take part in the democratic process.''
Danielle Ameden can be reached at 508-634-7521 or dameden@cnc.com.