GOP Lawmakers' Town Halls Derailed by Voters Furious at Trump and Musk
Republican lawmakers across the country are coming face-to-face with droves of angry constituents in the wake of Donald Trump and Elon Musk's upending of the federal government.
Representative Mark Alford held a town hall in Belton, Missouri, Monday, where he was met with jeers from the crowd as he attempted to justify Musk's power over government personnel, days after the unelected bureaucrat told federal employees to report five things they accomplished in the last week, or be fired.
'Why is an unelected person allowed to hire and fire federal employees?' Alford read from a piece of paper, in a video from the Kansas City Star.
Alford struggled to respond to the question as his constituents shouted him down. 'The reason is ... he was hired.… Elon Musk was hired by the executive Donald Trump, and he has given him that authority—'
The room erupted into loud booing.
Alford's limp support for the massive layoffs recommended by Musk's Department of Government Efficiency was peppered with interjections about the billionaire technocrat's blatant conflicts of interest and lack of oversight, according to a video posted to Facebook by Daniel Scharpenburg, a union labor activist.
The Missouri Republican really stepped in it by suggesting that if his constituents weren't happy with Trump's appointment of Musk, they could vote for someone else in the next election.
'We didn't elect Elon!' one person screamed.
'You don't represent us, you represent Elon Musk!' cried another.
In Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Republican Representative Glenn Grothman also came face-to-face with his angry constituents in an overflowing town hall Friday morning, according to Wisconsin Public Radio.
Like Alford, Grothman attempted to downplay Musk's unchecked power when asked how he felt about the unelected bureaucrat's role in government.
'He does not have the ability to do any actions on his own,' Grothman said, echoing Trump.
'We did not elect him!' one man shouted.
When faced with one constituent voicing her disgust with Musk's incendiary rhetoric about assistance programs, Grothman fled.
'Calling those people with different abilities 'leeches' and 'losers,' and that they're 'leeching off the system,'' the constituent said.
'I don't think so,' Grothman said.
'Yes, I've heard it from their own posts,' the constituent responded.
'I don't believe it,' Grothman said, walking away.
'You don't believe it—you can read it! You are in denial,' the constituent cried.
'I'll google it,' Grothman said over his shoulder as he continued out of the room.
Earlier this month, Musk reposted a meme on X calling out the 'parasite class' who use the federal programs Trump intends to slash.
And in Trinity, Texas, Republican Representative Pete Sessions also heard criticism from dissatisfied constituents during a town hall in a community center Saturday, according to The New York Times.
Veteran Louis Smith told Sessions that while he supported cuts to government spending, Musk was not the guy for the job.
'I like what you're saying, but you need to tell more people,' Smith said, per the Times. 'The guy in South Africa is not doing you any good—he's hurting you more than he's helping.'
Over the weekend, a woman was dragged out of a Republican town hall in Idaho for questioning whether the event was meant to be a public forum or a 'lecture.' A former NFL player was also carried out of a City Council meeting in California by police officers last week after protesting the installation of a MAGA plaque at a public library.
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