George Washington Weighs in on the Health Care 'Debate'

Hey teabaggers, if you want to pretend you're just like the founding fathers, it'd help if you acted like one. One Democratic House member is doing her part to show that yelling and screaming and acting like a two year-old in the throes of a tantrum wasn't the way the framers of the Constitution got things done.

The Hill:

If Rep. Betsy Markey (D-Colo.) gets confronted by Tea Party Patriots next week, she'll counter with a patriot of her own.

Markey's staff will be handing out a copy of George Washington's “Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior” to everyone at her public events.

It’s her effort to cool down the boiling debate, with a deliberate nod to Tea Party Protesters, some of whom don tri-cornered hats and carry "Don't tread on me" flags to protest the Democrats' health care plans.

“If you're going to have rules of civility, who better to get them from than George Washington?” said Markey spokesman Ben Marter.

It's an idea, but I really don't see it making any difference. These people have some weird idea of what the founders were like -- on their knees in constant prayer, for example -- and they seem to have perfected the art of ignoring all evidence to the contrary. If it's not the completely fabricated George Washington or Thomas Jefferson they already know, they aren't likely to become educated by exposure to the truth.

Still, teabaggers and town hall mobsters could probably benefit from advice like "Every Action done in Company, ought to be with Some Sign of Respect, to those that are Present," "Wherein you reprove Another be unblameable yourself; for example is more prevalent than Precepts," and "Use no Reproachfull Language against any one neither Curse nor Revile." And a few could probably stand to "Kill no Vermin as Fleas, lice ticks &c in the Sight of Others, if you See any filth or thick Spittle put your foot Dexteriously upon it if it be upon the Cloths of your Companions, Put it off privately, and if it be upon your own Cloths return Thanks to him who puts it off."

Unfortunately, "stop being stupid!" and "don't attack people who are trying to help you" aren't among the first president's pearls of wisdom. And you really can't count on them to figure those out for themselves.