The president of the conservative Club for Growth is urging Republican lawmakers to continue town hall gatherings despite concerns that they are being targeted by liberal activists as a means of protesting GOP policies.
"Do your job," David McIntosh said at a press gathering Thursday in Washington, according to Politico. "Because the worst thing that can happen for a member of either party is to get out of touch with their constituents. If the other team's good at basketball, you don't leave the field."
Earlier this month, Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, reportedly told lawmakers in a private meeting to stop holding in-person town halls. Hudson said Democratic activists were drowning out the voices of constituents, and he predicted the trend would worsen. He encouraged House Republicans to instead hold tele-town halls or Facebook Live events so that moderators could filter questions and comments.
Liberal groups such as Indivisible Action and MoveOn, which receive funds from far-left billionaire George Soros' Open Society Foundations, have been at the center of the demonstrations, The Washington Free Beacon reported last month. Both groups launched national "mobilization" efforts targeting the "Trump-Musk agenda" and "Trump-Musk coup" during the congressional recess period.
The groups' local organizers launched protests against House Republicans at town halls and district offices that garnered widespread media coverage, according to the Free Beacon. MoveOn targeted Arizona's David Schweikert, California's Ken Calvert, and Virginia's Jen Kiggans, and Indivisible organized protests against Michigan's Tom Barrett and Wisconsin's Bryan Steil and Scott Fitzgerald, among others.
McIntosh said that if GOP lawmakers are worried their opponents are organizing people to show up at their town halls, they should encourage their supporters to attend, too, according to Politico.
McIntosh said he has not coordinated with Musk's political team yet, but "it's kind of on my to-do list, reach out to those folks and signal what we're doing" because it's crucial to work with other conservative groups ahead of the midterm elections.
McIntosh said Republicans are facing an uphill fight to hold their narrow House majority in next year's midterm elections and must show Americans they can deliver on the GOP agenda. He said he is worried that the Democrats' message that Republicans want to cut Medicaid is an effective attack without a solid counterargument.
"The historical trend is the party that doesn't have the White House gains seats, and with the margin so close, it's going to be tough for Republicans to keep the majority," he said, according to Politico.
But he added the House districts in play next year favor Republicans, "so that's one thing that gives me hope."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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