TIVERTON –– They crowded into the function room at Brantal’s restaurant for more than two hours Wednesday night, roughly 100 concerned Rhode Islanders with something to say about Congressional efforts to overhaul the nation’s health-care system.

The “town hall” meeting was Rhode Island’s fifth such public health-care discussion hosted by an elected official in recent months, but the first led by a new candidate for the United States Congress. It was also the first meeting specifically designed for residents of the First Congressional District

“I’m certainly not an expert in health care,” said host, state Rep. John J. Loughlin II, R-Tiverton, who hopes to unseat Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy in next year’s election. “This is your meeting. This is your opportunity to be heard.”

Kennedy has held several private meetings with constituents, but has yet to take questions in a public setting. A previous plan to host a town hall meeting was canceled after the death of his father.

Loughlin Wednesday night reminded his audience on more than one occasion of his opponent’s reluctance to appear publicly.

“We’re going to make sure that Congressman Kennedy gets a copy of the DVD tonight, so he can hear exactly what you think,” Loughlin told them.

In contrast to the previous meetings with members of Congress, there were no signs at this gathering, very little shouting and just one brief debate. The vast majority of the crowd shared their host’s opposition to Democrat-backed health-care legislation currently being debated in Congress.

The passionate opposition was largely focused on a general distrust of government and illegal immigrants.

“They’re stealing from my back pocket and my paycheck,” said Donna Cook, of North Tiverton, prompting loud applause. “They’re stealing from all of us. They’re a burden.”

Loughlin had assembled a three-person panel that included a former insurance industry executive and two members of the Ocean State Policy Research Institute, a local organization that supports conservative principles.

The audience largely appeared to share the ideology of the panelists, until insurance expert Joel Cooper suggested that the nation’s current health-care system needs improvement.

“We have some of the worst infant mortality rates in the nation,” Cooper said to a chorus of groans. “Our care is not good.”

“Then why do they come?” someone shouted, an apparent reference to illegal immigrants. Cooper began to answer, but was interrupted by shouting.

Later, the only supporter of the Democratic health-care proposals to participate in Loughlin’s meeting commented on the interaction: “We shouldn’t want to shout down someone who says our system isn’t perfect,” said Peter Asen, of Ocean State Action, a collection of labor unions and advocacy organizations. “I’m not sure if all the illegal immigrants left the country our problems would be solved.”

Kennedy’s office on Wednesday declined to comment on Loughlin’s meeting, although it confirmed plans to host a telephone-based health-care forum with constituents Monday evening.

Kennedy dismissed Loughlin’s meeting as a political stunt Saturday morning after appearing at an invitation-only forum hosted by the AARP.

At the time, Kennedy said, he would not host a face-to-face public meeting that allows protesters an opportunity to spread what he called “violent rhetoric.”

“Unfortunately, these town hall meetings have been hijacked by these Tea Party folks and extremists who really take away from the honest dialogue on the facts of the debate and end up seeing this issue devolve into fear mongering and the peddling of misconceptions,” Kennedy said.

Rhode Island Tea Party President Colleen Conley did not attend Wednesday night’s meeting, but said in an earlier interview that she met with Kennedy privately in August to encourage him to host a public meeting.

“He should, and it should be a format where people can ask real questions, where the questions aren’t controlled,” she said. “It shouldn’t be a tele-town hall meeting where he can avoid looking people in the eye.”

“That’s the cowardly way out,” she said of Kennedy’s plans to host a telephone-based forum.

Each of Rhode Island’s other three members of Congress have participated in tele-town halls. They have also each appeared at two public events each to discuss the health-care overhaul pending in Congress.

John Santoro has attended all the previous meetings hosted by the delegation. He drove from Cranston Wednesday night to attend Loughlin’s meeting.

“I want to see what other people are saying,” Santos said at Loughlin’s event. “It’s going to be videotaped for Kennedy so he can see it … If we can inform one person, it’s worth it.”

speoples@projo.com