Republican Rep. LaMalfa hammered in profanity-laced town hall
"No fascism in America!" one man yelled as LaMalfa explained he was "in the room" on Jan. 6, attempting to reshape the narrative around the insurrection at the Capitol. "You need to be impeached!" the man said.
"Put that finger down. That's really mature," LaMalfa said as another man apparently flipped him off.
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"Bull----!" the man continued to yell, calling out President Donald Trump's pardons for Jan. 6 rioters.
It didn't get any easier from there.
Another woman talked about LaMalfa's vote for the "Bull---- bill," further pressing the congressman on his support for the president's immigration actions.
"Newsom's doing a fine job of letting people out as it is," LaMalfa said, shifting blame to California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Many attendees let the congressman hear their profane commentary without ever posing a question to the seven-term lawmaker.
"We have a question on this side?" a woman moderator asked.
"F--- you!" another man yelled back.
As LaMalfa attempted to justify his vote for Trump's so-called "big, beautiful bill," saying the reforms target "bad apples," he was booed -- then LaMalfa said Veterans Affairs funding would not be cut, prompting some attendees to call him a "liar."
A woman drew applause from a number of attendees after defending federal funding for PBS and NPR.
"This bill is not going to be the be-all, end-all on the whole Medicaid question," LaMalfa said. "It's not the end of the discussion." He then explained it targets "illegal immigrants" -- drawing more groans and boos.
"Liar!" one man shouted again.
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Another called him an "---hole."
Many in the crowd also demanded that LaMalfa support the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. On Monday, A federal judge in New York denied the Trump administration's motion to unseal grand jury testimony from the criminal case against Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
"What's interesting about the Epstein issue, is that it wasn't an issue during the Biden administration," LaMalfa quipped, drawing boos. He said that he's hoping that grand jury reports will be unsealed before Congress returns from recess in early September. "It's a bad look to have this information continue to be suppressed," he added, though he acknowledged the need to redact sensitive information.
"You all left. The speaker of the House released you guys so you didn't have to deal with releasing the files," a woman told LaMalfa.
"Everyone should be held accountable," LaMalfa said -- stressing people deserve due process -- drawing boos again. "Are people for due process?" LaMalfa wondered aloud as he was jeered.
LaMalfa, who has a seat on the Agriculture Committee and is chairman of the subcommittee on forestry and horticulture, also was criticized for his support of Trump's global tariffs.
"If you're not here to either offer your resignation, why aren't you here to apologize to the farmers of the North State because of your support for the Trump tariffs?" a man who identified himself as being from Chico said.
"I'm not going to do either of those things," LaMalfa said, asking the audience to engage in a productive conversation.
Despite the consistently disrespectful tenor of the town hall, LaMalfa kept his composure throughout the 75-minute event, never raising his voice or returning the invective he received.
"We went past our time a little bit," LaMalfa said as he concluded the town hall. "I appreciate all your comments here," LaMalfa said as one man repeatedly shouted "F--- you, Doug!"
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