About 50 local residents were among the thousands of conservatives chanting, ''Kill the bill,'' as they rallied against the Democrats' health care overhaul plan at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday.

According to John Price, spokesman for We the People - Ohio Valley, many of those from the Ohio Valley had prearranged meetings with U.S. Reps. Alan Mollohan, D-W.Va., and Charles Wilson, D-Ohio, during their visit. But many others from the rally also attempted to enter the Cannon House Office Building to meet with their congressmen.

This overwhelmed security at the building, and the local group was not able to enter in time to meet with Wilson, Price said. While not at the rally himself, Price noted he received reports back in Wheeling from those who were.

"They only had one scanner there, and hundreds were trying to get in," Price reported of security at the building. "Why they only had one, we don't know. They should have been expecting a lot of people."

The local group, though, did get in to see Mollohan. They told him they believe Congress needs to take more time to consider the health care bill. Mollohan indicated to them that he was still planning to vote in favor of the legislation, according to Price.

They next met with an aide to U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., Price said. They asked the aide to request that the senator use his influence to kill the bill.

Price said the office of U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., also was contacted prior to the trip, but Rockefeller "declined to meet with the group," as did Sens. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio. Members also had no luck in securing an appointment with the office of U.S. Rep. Zack Space, D-Ohio, who did not return their phone calls, according to Price.

''This bill is the greatest threat to freedom that I have seen,'' House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio told the crowd gathered on the lawn near the West Front of the Capitol.

The protest attracted many of the so-called Tea Party demonstrators angry with increased spending and an expanded government role under the Obama administration.

Their signs ranged from the harsh, ''Waterboard Congress,'' to an echo of the rallying cry at August town halls with lawmakers, ''Vote no to government-run health care.''

One protester carried a placard reading, ''Bury Obamacare with Kennedy,'' a reference to Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., who died of brain cancer this past summer.

The demonstrators came to Washington by plane, bus and other means to send a message to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., as they press ahead with health care legislation.

''It's upsetting because of where we've come from to where we are today, to see our freedom eroding,'' said Ben Fourman, 72, of Farmingdale, N.J. The retiree wore a T-shirt that said, ''Liberty equals limited government.''

Deborah Stevenson, 58, of Southbury, Conn., boarded a bus Thursday at 3:30 a.m. to make the noon rally. ''Congress and the entire government need to pay attention to the Constitution and stop passing unconstitutional law,'' she said.

Ken Klyberg, of Satellite Beach, Fla., flew to Washington with his wife Misty. ''Common sense is lacking in the decisions that are being made in Washington,'' he complained.

Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, told the crowd, ''We're not going to leave this Hill until we kill this bill.''

Democrats hope to pass the far-reaching legislation on Saturday and gained the backing Thursday of the American Medical Association and the AARP, the powerful seniors lobby.

Inside the Capitol, legislative action continued in the House and the Senate.

The White House downplayed the rally. Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs criticized a Republican reform plan, saying it wouldn't reduce government cost of health care and includes ''old ideas.''

''There's a rally going on without a solution on their side,'' Gibbs said.