WASHINGTON — In town hall meetings across the country, Republicans in Congress have been met with jeers and anger over sweeping changes and cuts to the federal government under the Trump administration.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has advised fellow Republicans not to hold the town halls, calling participants “professional protesters.”
Outside Rep. James Comer’s Paducah office Thursday, and as first reported by WPSD, protesters gathered, some in chicken suits, claiming Comer was too “chicken” to face his constituents and hold a town hall meeting.
Among the protesters was Graves County resident Leslie McColgin, co-leader of Four Rivers Indivisible, which calls itself a “forum for civic engagement and action for freedom, social justice and equality.”
If Comer held a town hall, McColgin would ask about him Medicaid, she said.
“The cuts in Medicaid are going to be devastating to so many services that I know and care about,” said McColgin.
House Republicans’ budget plan calls for slashing $880 billion over 10 years in spending overseen by the committee that has jurisdiction for Medicaid, but President Donald Trump has said the program is not on the chopping block.
In a statement encouraging constituents to contact Comer’s offices, a spokesperson said, “The protestors outside of the Paducah office met with the Congressman’s staff on 4 different occasions and their concerns were documented. Congressman Comer does not plan on holding therapy sessions for left-wing activists suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
“These aren’t people that are asking for therapy,” McColgin told Spectrum News. “These are people that are asking for government services, and that’s his job, to have town halls and explain his position on policies such as Medicaid, such as the oversight of how they’re dismantling Social Security.”
The office of Rep. Andy Barr, R-Lexington, confirmed he will not attend a Saturday town hall listed on the website of the League of Women Voters of Lexington and being promoted as the People’s Town Hall from “Gathering for Democracy.”
Barr is planning a telephone town hall on Monday and said in an online post:
“Every day, we take phone calls, respond to emails and letters, and work diligently to resolve casework—regardless of political affiliation. We host monthly office hours in every county of the Sixth Congressional District as part of my ongoing accessibility initiative ... What we will not do is provide a forum for individuals more interested in shouting and grandstanding than engaging in a respectful and constructive conversation.”
Barr’s office told Spectrum News his telephone town hall Monday, March 24 had already been planned and that it will be live on his Facebook page.
Last month, Rep. Morgan McGarvey, D-Louisville, said more than 1,000 people came out to his town halls in Louisville.
