Congressman Jim Gerlach says the Occupy Philadelphia demonstrators have the right to protest peacefully, and he understands why they are upset. “There is a lot of frustration.  There’s no question.  When you’re at 9.1 percent unemployment for as long as we’ve been as a country, there are a lot of people questioning what is being done out of Washington to deal with it, and I think a lot of these people ought to go to the White House and ask the President why he’s putting forth policies that aren’t really helping the economy, and why he’s continuing to do what he’s doing if it’s not working.”

Gerlach, a Republican who has parts of Montgomery, Chester and Berks Counties in his district, says some protesters are angry because people on Wall Street and in business generally are making money and they aren’t, and they want some of it, while others just want jobs, but their message lacks a clear focus.  He appeared Tuesday on the WNPV talk program Comment Please by Univest.”  Meanwhile, demonstrators plan to protest in Doylestown Thursday, October 13, and possibly in Lansdale and Souderton on dates not yet determined.