‘We want you to show some of the backbone,’ one voter shouted
Democrats held a flurry of town halls this week, expecting their voters to rally around them in protest of the Republican agenda. But the move backfired: They faced fiery backlash from liberal constituents who accused the lawmakers of lacking a backbone.
“We are not interested in hearing that you are in the minority. We know that!” a constituent shouted at Rep. Glenn Ivey (D., Md.) on Tuesday. “We want you to show some of the backbone and strategic brilliance that Mitch McConnell would have in the minority. We want you to show fight, and you are not fighting!”
“The house is on fire, and you’re talking about voting!” another screamed.
Democrats ramped up their town halls after spending weeks ridiculing Republicans for scaling back their own in-person events after facing disruptions from left-wing protesters and hecklers. But Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer’s vote with Republicans last week to avoid a government shutdown led to party in-fighting and calls for the New York senator to step down—and angry constituents who feel Democrats haven’t combated President Donald Trump aggressively enough.
“I respect Chuck Schumer. I think he had a great, long-standing career. But I’m afraid that it may be time for the Senate Democrats to get a new leader,” Ivey said.
Elsewhere, other Democrats also fielded criticism of Schumer. One voter on Saturday told Vermont Sen. Peter Welch that “Schumer has done what I think is the most destructive thing that he could possibly do as Democratic leader.”
Arizona Sens. Ruben Gallego and Mark Kelly sidestepped a constituent’s question during a Monday town hall asking whether they supported replacing Schumer. But others dogged them more directly.
“We want you to be straight with us. How do we go to the next level to fight this if that’s the case?” one constituent said. “Would you mind telling your colleagues in Washington that when they’re burning down this house, there’s people still inside. My kid is inside,” another Arizonan said.
Oregon Democrats Sen. Ron Wyden and Rep. Janelle Bynum on Sunday faced an audience member who said he’s “so pissed off right now at the leadership in the United States Senate that they are not willing to step up and fight.”
Several left-wing protesters were ejected from a joint town hall with Sen. Michael Bennet (D., Colo.) and Rep. Brittany Pettersen on Wednesday. Several stood up and shouted while holding signs that read, “Bennet sold us out.”
Bennet’s fellow Colorado Democrat, Sen. John Hickenlooper, wasn’t spared either, even though he held a virtual town hall, which tends to be more controlled.
“Be angrier. The country is dying,” one commenter wrote. After Hickenlooper said Democrats should use social media to pressure Republicans, another wrote, “Oh good, Hickenlooper is retweeting. We’re saved.”
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