The Washington Post’s Ezra Klein reported recently that Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who is up for reelection in 2010, sent a fundraising letter asking donors to give him money to help him “defeat ‘Obama-care.’” Grassley is currently locked in negotiations with a small group of Senate Finance Committee members, reportedly working on a possible bipartisan health care proposal.

As we previously reported, ThinkProgress attended a closed-door health care town hall forum in Hialeah, FL, this past Tuesday, where Sens. Mel Martinez (R-FL), John McCain (R-AZ), and Mitch McConnell (R-KY) discussed their opposition to Obama’s health reform plan. After the event, the three senators took a trip across town to the ritzy Biltmore hotel in Miami where they attended a fundraising reception sponsored by the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

ThinkProgress attended the closed-door reception. Upon arriving at the venue, we were surprised to see a conference room that was marked as a fundraising reception room for Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA). Grassley was not listed on the official invitation. Minutes later, Grassley arrived, where he joined his fellow colleagues McConnell and McCain. In his remarks, Grassley told the wealthy Republican activists that he was committed to fighting Obama’s health care plan.

ThinkProgress tried repeatedly to contact Grassley’s office for comment, but they refused to get back to us.

Right-wing bloggers have seized on remarks by White House green jobs advisor Van Jones to claim that he is a “race baiter” who is “just like herpes.” In 2006, Van Jones recorded a series of lectures on good, evil and social justice, based on his years of experience as an activist who successfully worked to reform the California criminal justice system with the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. In one such lecture, he discussed how society is failing not just minority youth but also white youth, making reference to the Columbine shooting:

Our young white males are suffering in this society, profoundly. Profoundly. And no one is saying a word about it. We’ll criminalize the black student, black child, criminalize the Latino child, we have this whole discussion about whether they are animals or they not animals, should we abuse them should we help them, blah blah blah. You’ve never seen a Columbine done by a black child. Never. They always say, “We can’t believe it happened here. We can’t believe it’s these suburban white kids.” It’s only them! Now, a black kid might shoot another black kid. He’s not going to shoot up the whole school! “My cousin’s up in here, I’m not going to shoot the whole school then, I might hit my cousin! I’m gonna shoot you though!”

But these young white men will be in so much pain, and so isolated, so alienated they’ll shoot up the entire school. Where is the concern, where is the love, where is the compassion for these young men?

Watch it:

Van Jones “mocks Columbine,” RedState.com claims, even as they admit “his statement is true as far as it goes.” “Only ‘Suburban White Kids’ Shoot Up Schools,” blares the Drudge Report. But Van Jones’ speech is clearly a desperate plea for compassion and healing — to recognize that though our criminal justice system and society still treat youths differently based on race and class, we should do better no matter what color — black, brown or white.

Van Jones continues:

Where is concern, where is the love, where is the compassion for these young men? And it is doubly twisted, because if there’s anything that you’re doing that is wrong, we want to hurt you, we want to punish you, we’re not going to help you, we’re not going to love you. And so rather than punish you and attack you and jump on you like we do the black kids, we’ll just ignore you and we’ll just neglect you.

We have got to begin to look at this idea of criminality, of evil, of wrongdoing, of mistakes as being a universal condition, requiring a universally loving response and a universally embracing response — so that our society in trying to confront evil at any level does not in fact become evil.

It is just as evil, in my view — to attack these young black and brown men — it is just as evil to neglect and to ignore these young white men, who, as best I can tell, have very little now in the way of loving, affirmative male leadership, that can put an arm around, wipe away a tear, and show a kind of masculinity that is not brittle or mean-spirited. And that I think is the problem that gets masked over by calling any community evil.

Now, according to right-wing bloggers, it is Van Jones who is “evil.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: Over the past month, ThinkProgress has traveled to town hall events across the country to report what we’re seeing on the ground. This is our eighth eyewitness report.

This past Wednesday, ThinkProgress attended a health care town hall forum held by Rep. Bill Posey (R-FL) in Melbourne, FL. During the event, Posey expressed his opposition to a public option. On the day of the town hall, the lead editorial in the local newspaper — The Florida Today — noted that Posey receives excellent health care as a member of Congress:

Keep in mind Posey received free health care premiums courtesy of taxpayers during his many years in the Florida Legislature. And that taxpayers pay up to 70 percent of Congress members’ premiums. In the real world, more Americans are losing health care and dying for lack of it every day.

During the question-and-answer session, an attendee ask Posey, “Why should taxpayers pay for your insurance when you clearly make enough money to pay for it on your own?” After reading the question aloud, Posey quipped, “One of the perks of the job I guess!” A member of the audience yelled out, “You’re welcome!” Posey concluded by saying that he “needed to get a more detailed breakdown to better answer the question.”

At the town hall, Posey expressed his unwillingness to extend the same “perks” he receives — guaranteed, affordable, quality insurance — to all Americans. He said he opposes the public option, and told the crowd that, if Congress passes it, all members should be required to enroll in it.

After the event, ThinkProgress confronted Posey about his objections to a public plan; we asked him whether he’s also against Medicare:

TP: I heard you’re against the public option tonight. Are you also against Medicare for your constituents? …

POSEY: No, we have Medicare now. I don’t have a problem with Medicare.

TP: Why not a problem with Medicare then? A public option is giving an option to all Americans just like Medicare.

POSEY: No.

TP: What’s the difference?

POSEY: There’s a big difference.

At that point, a Posey staff member pulled him away from our conversation. Watch it:

Of course, Posey is for Medicare; it appeared that a majority of the crowd on Wednesday night consisted of seniors. Nevertheless, he supports a “tenther” provision that would theoretically declare Medicare unconstitutional in Florida. And he refuses to give all Americans the option to buy into quality, affordable coverage that both he and seniors enjoy.