Thompson needs to hold town hall

I had been waiting for a meeting with Rep. Thompson since February when he refused to hold a town meeting. Finally, June 15, I received a call to meet on June 16, a workday, at 9:30 a.m. Two others were in my group.

We brought up policies favoring the rich, including health care and Medicaid cuts, dismantling government agencies, and self-serving violations of the Emoluments Clause. He dismissed our concerns.

Rep. Thompson totally backed President Trump and the Republican agenda. He made a disrespectful remark about Sen. Casey. He implied that because we (his constituents) did not work in Washington, and he does, he is better informed. He defended cuts to Medicaid, a personal concern of one attendee, claiming “able bodied” people are taking advantage of the system.

I expressed the need for a town meeting to the staff member who sat in on our meeting. He told me he has seen a “playbook” by “Obama’s people” that detailed how to recruit and train people from outside districts to go to town meetings and disrupt them. That’s why Rep. Thompson is refusing town meetings. I called the representative’s office asking for proof of this claim with no reply.

Regardless, constituents deserve well-advertised, convenient town meetings with Rep. Thompson to engage in public dialogue about issues critical to all voters in District 5.

This story was originally published June 24, 2017 at 7:35 PM with the headline "Thompson needs to hold town hall."