Congressman: Health bill a ‘threat to democracy’

President Obama’s plans to reform the healthcare system in the U.S. is a “threat to democracy,” Rep. Wally Herger (R-Calif.) declared Friday.

“Our democracy has never been threatened as much as it is today,” Herger told a town hall meeting, according to Mount Shasta Area Newspapers.

“Health care is not the only threat to our democracy,” he latter added, pointing to other Democratic policy priorities.

Herger spoke to constituents about the controversial plans before Congress that have dominated town hall meetings across the country during the August recess.

Herger, for one, vowed to oppose the proposed public (or “government-run”) option for consumers with “everything that I have.”

He also praised one constituent who described himself as a “proud, right-wing terrorist,” mimicking language in a Department of Homeland Security report earlier this year warning of domestic threats from conservative critics of certain policies.

“There is a great American,” the twelve-term Republican lawmaker responded.