Just returned from downtown Berkeley Springs, West Virginia.

My hometown.

Where our Congresswoman, Shelley Moore Capito (R-West Virginia), was at a ribbon cutting ceremony.

Capito had earmarked some money for a community beautification project for the Town of Bath.

And she was there along with a group of local dignitaries and volunteers.

Across the street in Berkeley Springs State Park, a group of citizens was carrying signs calling for health care reform.

During her remarks, Capito told the crowd that after the ceremony, she wanted to talk with her constituents about the issues of the day.

I’m a constituent.

And what I had on my mind was the sixty Americans who die every day from lack of health insurance.

The hundreds of thousands of dollars Capito has taken from the insurance industry.

And why she continues to oppose the only solution that will both control costs and cover everyone – single payer national health insurance.

Capito knows I wanted to speak with her about health care.

I ran into her on Capitol Hill earlier in the summer – and she gave me a polite brush off when I asked her to address the issue.

“Not now,” Capito said at the time. “Maybe later.”

So, after the ribbon cutting today, I went up to Capito and said I had a couple of questions on health care reform.

“I’ve got lots of folks waiting to talk to me,” Capito said.

“And I’m one of them,” I said.

“And I’ve talked to you,” Capito said.

“But not about this,” I said.

“Let the Congresswoman talk to some of these other folks,” one of her aides chimes in.

“I am one of the folks,” I said.

All of a sudden, I felt a strong arm around my waist – pulling me away.

I look back and it is a police officer.

“Just back up,” the officer said to me.

“I’m a constituent asking a question,” I told the officer.

“She don’t want you back there, okay?” he says.

“But why?” I asked. “She said she would take questions from constituents.”

A bit later, I told the officer that “I don’t think you should have pulled me away from her.”

“Sir, I don’t mean to be rude,” the officer said. “I don’t work for her.”

“Why did you pull me away, then?” I asked.

“Because they didn’t want you up there,” the officer said.

“But sometimes in a democracy you have a right to question your member of Congress,” I said.

“Correct,” the officer said.

“And she can’t say – get this guy out of here,” I said.

“She didn’t say that,” the officer said.

“Then why did you pull me out of there?” I asked.

No answer.

At this point, Congresswoman Capito leads the gathering to a local church for a reception.

I follow.

The police follow.

I see a reporter.

I ask her what paper she’s with.

The Martinsburg Journal, she says.

“You know how Capito said she would talk with constituents afterward?” I ask the reporter. “I wanted to talk with her about health care, and she said – not now.”

“And I got pulled away by this officer,” I said.

“You should ask Capito about that,” I told the reporter.

Reporting this to the Journal reporter irritated my police entourage.

The officer who pulled me away from Capito tells me:

“Listen, listen, listen, we have a noise ordinance,” he says.

A noise ordinance?

I’m talking to a reporter.

Another officer, more forcefully, says “I’m going to tell you one time, calm down. We need you to calm down. Just calm down.”

I was calm as all get out, officer. (See the video.)

Given the fact that sixty Americans are dying every day from lack of health insurance.

I just wanted to ask my member of Congress about the money she is taking from the health insurance industry.

Her position against single payer national health insurance.

And the resulting deaths of sixty of my fellow Americans every day.

Instead of answering, Capito calls the cops.