From the September 8 edition of MSNBC's Hardball:

BUCHANAN: Look, what has happened with Barack Obama is he's gone from 70 percent to 50 percent in his health care proposal. It's not 15 percent that are against it, it's a majority of the country that's against it.

DAVID CORN (Mother Jones Washington bureau chief): That's not true.

BUCHANAN: You have tremendous numbers of people coming out -- 2,500 people show up in the middle of August in Reston, Virginia, a laid-back community, to shout at the former chairman of the Democratic Party. The point is, Mike, this country's very nationally polarized over health care. Obama has lost the cachet that he's had. And it's not simply Rush Limbaugh that's done that or the folks over at Fox News. It is the country that's losing confidence in this guy.

CORN: Well, listen, the polls still show that a majority believe in health care reform, that 70 percent or so favor a public option. I mean, it's not as if there's a popular revolt. There are people out there who are being very vocal. They're being -- listen, they're getting -- they're holding up signs accusing him of “Afro-Leninism.”

BUCHANAN: Oh --

CORN: And they're getting on TV, and they're causing a great right-wing noise machine.

In fact, crowd was reportedly “dominated by reform proponents”

Washington Post: “A raucous crowd of about 2,500 people jammed a high school gymnasium in Reston on Tuesday night to hear U.S. Rep. James P. Moran Jr. offer a robust defense of Democratic efforts to reform health care. [...] Unlike at many town hall meetings that have received attention across the country, the crowd in the Democratic-leaning district was dominated by reform proponents, many carrying signs distributed by President Obama's political action group Organizing for America.” [The Washington Post, 8/26/09]

CQ Today: “The conservative protesters, of course, came to Reston in force, complete with 'Don't Tread on Me' flags, signs warning that health legislation would lead to the euthanasia of seniors, and plenty of rage. But they were overmatched by supporters of Moran and Obama, who had their own signs -- or were provided them by Organizing for America, Obama's grass-roots support group -- and who were able to yell loudest. [...] 'Dissent is as American as apple pie,' Moran told the audience of about 2,500, gathered in the gymnasium of South Lakes High School.” [CQ Today, 8/26/09, accessed via the Nexis database]

Buchanan joins Fox News in advancing attack regarding Moran town hall

Media Matters report: Fox News' town hall coverage amplifies opponents of health care reform, ignores supporters. A Media Matters for America review found that, during the week of August 24, Fox News aired 22 clips of town hall meeting attendees expressing an opinion or asking a question that opposed progressive health care reform efforts but aired zero clips of town hall attendees expressing an opinion or asking a question supporting reform. For example, despite the reporting by other media outlets, on the August 26 edition of America's Newsroom, after airing a clip from Moran's August 25 town hall, co-host Gregg Jarrett stated that there “seemed to be more jeers than cheers at that town hall meeting.” That sentiment was echoed on Special Report later that day, when host Bret Baier reported, “Virginia Democratic Congressman Jim Moran was greeted by boos Tuesday in Reston, and the crowd frequently interrupted him. Former Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean was also on hand and both were given a hard time by many of the 3,000 people in that audience.”

Transcript

From the August 26 CQ Today article:

Republicans have taken control of the health care debate in August by overwhelming many congressional Democrats' local meetings with protests against President Obama's planned overhaul. On Tuesday night, at a town hall meeting with Rep. James P. Moran, Democrats showed they may yet recover.

The conservative protesters, of course, came to Reston in force, complete with “Don't Tread on Me” flags, signs warning that health legislation would lead to the euthanasia of seniors, and plenty of rage. But they were overmatched by supporters of Moran and Obama, who had their own signs -- or were provided them by Organizing for America, Obama's grass-roots support group -- and who were able to yell loudest.

Moran, a Democrat who represents Virginia's 8th District, was prepared as well, equipped with a slide show to guide him as he spent about 45 minutes on a tedious explanation of House Democrats' health legislation (HR 3200). He also brought some professional assistance: former Vermont governor -- and Democratic presidential candidate -- Howard Dean, a physician who demonstrated his health policy expertise by artfully answering a few more technical questions from the audience.

“Dissent is as American as apple pie,” Moran told the audience of about 2,500, gathered in the gymnasium of South Lakes High School. That statement was one of the few things said all night that drew no boos or shouts from conservatives.

All evening, when protesters tried to interrupt Moran or Dean or disrupt the meeting, supporters shouted them down. The pattern was set before Moran and Dean arrived: as soon as protesters began chanting “We can't afford it,” supporters answered with “Yes we can,” Obama's campaign slogan. They soon drowned out the protest.