Although the meeting was often acrimonious, several attendees thanked GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley for holding in-person meetings.
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FORT MADISON, Iowa − About 100 people crowded into the City Hall chambers here to press U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley on a range of grievances from potential Medicaid cuts to President Donald Trump’s treatment of refugees and immigrants.
The meeting was, at times, more of an airing of grievances for worked-up Iowans than a true question-and-answer session, with members of the audience often shouting down and over the soft-spoken senior senator.
“I’m pissed!” one man shouted as another tried to finish his question of Grassley: “Why won’t you do your job?”
Grassley spent about an hour during the April 15 town hall taking questions that spanned a wide range of topics, including tariffs, veterans care, changes to voting laws, potential cuts to SNAP benefits and Trump’s leadership more generally.
“I just want to know if you’re proud of voting for Trump and what he’s doing in office?” one attendee asked Grassley. “Are you proud of everything he’s doing?
“There’s no president I’ve agreed with 100% of the time,” Grassley responded before quickly moving on to the next question.
Although the gathering was often acrimonious, several attendees thanked Grassley for holding in-person meetings and complained that their U.S. House representatives had failed to do the same.
The National Republican Congressional Committee earlier this year advised its members not to hold in-person town halls as images and videos of disgruntled constituents went viral.
Iowa U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson has promised to continue holding in-person town halls despite the NRCC’s guidance, although she has not followed through so far.
Iowa’s other representatives have made promises to continue meeting with Iowans in their districts in other ways.
Grassley acknowledged the political climate has been charged since Trump took office.
“Already in three months, we got more emails than all of last year,” he told the audience.
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Talking to reporters following the meeting, Grassley said the energy rivals what he saw in 2009 as Congress debated the Affordable Care Act and in 2016 while he refused to hold Senate confirmation hearings for Democratic President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland.
But the senator appeared largely unfazed.
Keeping it in the family
After the meeting, Grassley told reporters that if his grandson, Republican Iowa Rep. Pat Grassley, decides to run for governor, he would support him.
After Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds surprised observers by announcing she would not seek reelection, House Speaker Pat Grassley said he’s “not ruling anything out” when it comes to a possible gubernatorial bid.
“If he did (run), it’s quite obvious I would support him,” Sen. Grassley said with a wide smile. “But he’s not concerned about that right now. He’s concerned about getting this legislative session shut down.”
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Des Moines Register, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected] or 515-284-8244. Follow her on X at @brianneDMR.