Getting public officials off talking points is what citizens must do

As town hall meetings go, the Sept. 26 “Conversation with Cathy” with congressional 5th District Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers at Cheney’s Wren Pierson Community Center was definitely good political theater, if nothing else.

But that’s part of the point — there was something else. A lot else, if you will, and too much to try to fit in one 704-word recap.

One of the biggest “else’s” for me was how well prepared most of those in attendance were. A few were political operatives, if you will, such as Spokane County Democratic Party Chair Jim CastroLang, who questioned McMorris Rodgers about allegati...