Washington, D.C . – Despite an unexpected recall back to Washington to feed the spending addiction of Washington Democrats, House Republicans continue to engage the American people and listen to their concerns at town hall events. Republicans are eager to give Americans a voice in changing the direction of Washington, and these events will help shape a new governing agenda for Congress. A sample of local highlights from these events can be found below.
Burgess addresses residents’ concerns Denton Record-Chronicle
Taking a break from work in the nation’s capital, U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess returned to his District 26 home to hear from constituents at area town hall meetings this week.
About 200 people gathered Thursday at the Denton High School auditorium to hear Burgess, R-Lewisville, touch on a variety of topics including health care, immigration reform and Barnett Shale gas drilling.
“The winds of change were blowing two years ago, and they are blowing today,” Burgess said.
Olson addresses community on local and national issues Deer Park Broadcaster
U.S. Rep. Pete Olson (R-Texas) made a stop at San Jacinto College’s central campus Thursday night to update area residents on issues at the national level, along with answering questions from constituents.
The first-term Republican has served as a congressman for District 22 during a time of economic woe which has affected his district directly. District 22 covers Brazoria, south Harris and Galveston counties.
Olson’s speech drew approximately 130 people to the 150 seat Monte Blue Music building to hear the congressman speak on issues such as energy, healthcare reform, the economy and in particular and the effects budget cuts are going to have on NASA. He also spoke to ongoing concerns about halted oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and its effect on the region.
At town hall, Brady bashes government The Courier
Shouts of approval and applause greeted U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, as he berated the Obama administration and its actions on a number of topics during a town hall meeting Wednesday evening.
“You cannot listen enough in this job and one of the problems in Washington is people do not listen,” he said.
A full house attended the congressman’s town hall meeting inside the Crighton Theater, many hoping to get their questions answered by Brady.
“There are so many issues being crammed down our throats that it’s hard to pick just one,” John Hearn, of Conroe, said. “We the people are very angry and are extremely wary of this. … As a general rule Congress is to blame for this.”
Brady’s three main issues were unemployment and how the drilling moratorium affects it, government spending and the deficit, and the new health care bill.
Wittman holds town hall Free Lance-Star
Rep. Rob Wittman (R–Montross) held a town hall meeting with veterans Tuesday night at the VFW hall on Princess Anne Street.
He answered questions on a wide range of topics, from the draw-down of forces in Iraq to CSX’s storage of hazardous materials train cars near Fredericksburg’s Mayfield neighborhood.
Here are some of his answers on those topics:
On whether the current draw-down of forces in Iraq is based on politics, or on advice from generals on the ground: “The key with withdrawal is the strategy behind it. We ought to be focused on giving credit to our men and women in uniform and their achievements there. I am confident that will happen,” and that strategy, not politics, will guide the withdrawal process.
Photos of these and other events can be found on ASO’s Flickr page
Tags: Member Activity, Press Release