GOP leaders skip town halls

COLUMBUS — The Democratic National Committee and other campaign groups will roll out events in Republican-held U.S. House districts beginning Friday, aiming to focus attention on GOP incumbents advised to skip town halls amid blowback over President Donald Trump's moves in his first months back in office. White House staff secretary Will Scharf, left, adviser Elon Musk, joined by his son X Musk, center, and U.S. President Donald Trump appear for an executive order signing in the Oval Office at the White House on Feb. 11, 2025 in Washington, D.C. Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images The DNC, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Association of State Democratic Committees will hold their own "people's town hall" events to highlight Trump's record in the opening of his second presidency, the groups said in a joint Friday statement that mentioned declining economic numbers, job cuts for veterans and threats to popular federal programs. One group asked U.S. Rep. Bob Latta, R-Findlay, to attend a town hall next week. A source said Latta cited a a scheduling conflict, saying he could not attend. The group, calling itself Firelands Indivisible, intends to go ahead without Latta. The Town hall/panel discussion is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday March 18 at Milestone Event Center, 11 S. Prospect St., Norwalk. For more news from Columbus go to https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/ Republicans staying away The events being organized by Democrats will feature locally and nationally known Democrats, including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who was the Democratic candidate for vice president last year. He is appearing at an event in Iowa Republican Rep. Zach Nunn's district Friday. Walz is also scheduled to appear at a Nebraska Democratic Party event in GOP Rep. Don Bacon's district Saturday. Republican members have largely avoided traditional town halls this year as Democratic-aligned groups have organized against Trump's agenda and the work of White House adviser Elon Musk to slash the federal workforce and threaten popular programs. The National Republican Congressional Committee, the Republican counterpart to the DCCC, advised incumbents against holding in-person town halls in the face of fierce opposition to Trump. "These increasingly vulnerable House Republicans are failing to do the most basic aspect of their jobs: meeting with the people they represent," DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene, of Washington, said in the Friday statement. "Voters deserve elected officials who will take the time to meet with and listen to them, but instead these House Republicans are hiding from their own voters to avoid having to defend their disastrous record of stripping health care and food access from the families, workers, and seniors in their communities." First batch Democrats will target some of the most vulnerable Republican House members in the first batch of town halls during the congressional recess scheduled from Friday to March 24. In addition to Nunn and Bacon, the incumbents in those districts are: Rep. Juan Ciscomani of Arizona, Rep. Gabe Evans of Colorado, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, Rep. John James of Michigan, Rep. Ann Wagner of Missouri and Reps. Ryan Mackenzie and Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania. The Democratic groups intend to hold similar events "in states across the country," according to the statement. "Republicans in Congress know they sold out their voters by backing the Trump-Musk agenda," DNC Chair Ken Martin said. "Instead of facing their constituents, they're running scared and hiding from the people they were elected to represent. If they won't talk to their own voters, then Democrats will." Threats against GOP members Some Republican officeholders, including North Carolina U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, say they have received death threats as the political environment has turned increasingly hostile. In a Thursday memo to media members, Tillis senior advisor Daniel Keylin said the senator, his staff and family members have been subject to threats. "Democratic parties and established left-wing political groups protesting a Republican member of Congress is nothing new nor newsworthy," Keylin wrote. "What is newsworthy is the volume of threats and harassment directed at members of Congress and their staff is the new normal and indicative of a much larger problem with the political discourse in our country."