On Friday, Rep. Joe Crowley (D-NY) was on MSNBC with Stephanie Ruhle, who mentioned how former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords (D-AZ) is criticizing Republican lawmakers for canceling town hall events. Republicans are either refusing to hold these events or holding alternative phone town halls in the wake of increased protests, some of which have been intense. Earlier this month, police escorted Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) out of his town hall.
Crowley pushed back on the notion that it’s not a safe time to hold town halls, noting that the chickens are coming home to roost for Republicans, who used the same tactics during the Obamacare debate period in 2009 and 2010. The congressman said he felt the pressure at his town hall events at the time.
He added that violence and threats aren’t welcomed, but noted that he sees an organic reaction to the GOP agenda concerning Obamacare, though his colleague Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) admitted that liberal activists are behind the organization of some of these town hall protests. Also, NTK Network, who clipped the exchange, noted that Mr. Crowley’s last town hall event was in November 2016, with the one before that being held in October of 2015.
So, a liberal congressman is criticizing Republicans for not holding or skipping on town hall events, while not hosting any of his own.
Crowley also said that the Democratic Party isn’t good at organizing. Seriously, labor unions (AFL-CIO, SEIU) and progressives (Occupy Wall Street) are not good at organizing? That’s simply not true.
