Two months into Donald Trump’s second presidency, lawmakers are encountering a lot of anger and frustration at town hall meetings. Some are frustrated with Trump’s far-right policies, while others are frustrated with Democrats, who, according to some voters, aren’t doing enough to oppose Trump’s agenda.
Karen Tumulty of the Washington Post describes that frustration in her March 24 column, citing comments from two lawmakers in New York State’s Hudson Valley, Democratic Rep. Pat Ryan and Republican Rep. Michael Lawler.
Lawler is conservative but not far right, and he did well among swing voters in his district in 2024.
“I wanted to listen to what the lawmakers themselves are hearing from their constituents,” Tumulty tells me. “What emerged was a profound — and completely understandable — sense of foreboding and confusion.
At his town hall, Ryan noted the questions submitted ahead of time and summarized them as follows: ‘We’re scared. We are outraged. We are sad. We feel powerless. “What can we do?”
According to Tumulty, “There was another feeling among the audience: exasperation with the impotence they have seen from Democrats.”
At a Ryan town hall, retired teacher Richard Mardex asked, “Where is the coordinated effort? “We need leadership.” And a woman exclaimed, “Where’s the action?”
Tumulty reports that at a Lawler event, a woman complained about a Social Security office closing and told Lawler, “I am encouraging you to go and talk to the government to please keep it open. We should establish at least one office here. Please, not just for me, but for all senior citizens.”
