(FOLSOM, CA) - Nearly 200 people packed the Folsom City Council Chambers on Monday night for a chance to see - and, in some cases, to argue with - U.S. Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Gold River, hosting his first public meeting in Folsom since taking office in January.

In a venue normally reserved for discussions of parks and permits, talk turned quickly to national issues: terrorism, Social Security accounts, immigration, gay marriage and the federal judiciary.

Curiously, the audience did not bring up major local issues such as the possible reopening of Folsom Dam Road and the planned bridge across the American River. The only mention of either issue came in Mayor Steve Miklos' introduction of the congressman, when Miklos thanked Lungren for helping the city to win a compromise from the federal Bureau of Reclamation on the dam road issue.

Lungren opened the meeting with an hourlong presentation of his agenda, identifying the prevention of future terrorist attacks as his top priority. Lungren knew three people who died in the 2001 World Trade Center attacks. He now chairs the Homeland Security Committee's subcommittee on economic security, infrastructure protection and cyber security. He also sits on the Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on crime, terrorism, and homeland security.

Lungren warned of a growing risk of future attacks, and cautioned against complacency.

"Folks, there are people out there now planning to kill you and me ..." he said. "Our challenge is to stop them from doing it."

Lungren also reflected on how the House of Representatives has changed since his previous tenure, as a representative of a Southern California district from 1979 to 1989. From 1991 to 1999, Lungren was the attorney general of California.

"I find that partisanship is harder-edged now," he said. "There's less cooperation."

Later, perhaps sensing that he faced a potentially partisan audience in Folsom, Lungren asked for politeness and opened the meeting to questions.

Much of the discussion that followed was, in fact, sharply partisan, with conservatives or liberals in the audience bursting into applause whenever their side made a strong point.

Roberta Ward, president of the Folsom Democratic Club, was one of several in the audience to press Lungren on his plan to address Social Security's future shortfalls.

Lungren conceded that personal accounts would do little to address the projected gap between Social Security revenues and its benefit commitments.

"We have to do some other things to fix (the problem of) solvency," he said. "That's why there's going to be some pain." Lungren did not detail possible benefit cuts or tax increases that might address the issue of solvency.

Other audience members raised issues from immigration to health savings accounts to the national debt.

The evening closed with a loud, ranging debate on the Constitution, and the proper role of federal and Supreme Court judges in interpreting it.

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        * The Bee's Jim Downing can be reached at (916) 608-7452 or jdowning@sacbee.com.

Rep. Dan Lungren