In the midst of an overwhelming response against the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act, Rep. Tom Garrett, R-Va., seems to be moving away from holding inclusive town halls. Instead, he has opted to insulate himself from criticism, first by cancelling previous town halls, and then by scheduling the town hall so that only a select few can attend. At first, the congressman seemed to be open to the idea of inclusive town halls. He affirmed his commitment to this idea in a preliminary press release on Feb. 24, in which he also announced the date of the original town hall event. However, his plans for an upcoming town hall in Charlottesville appear to be anything but inclusive.
A week after his original statement, Garrett released an updated press release for his town hall in Charlottesville, changing the date to March 31. In a second press release he also announced the town hall will take place in a small room — with only 135 seats available — at the Batten School. At first, tickets were only available to Batten students and a select few who could gain tickets through their local Democratic and Republican parties. After heavy criticism, the tickets will instead be dispersed through a lottery system. In the press release, Garrett also laid out ground rules for the town hall, explaining that signs, clapping, booing and chanting will not be allowed per Batten’s rules.
Through these rules and restrictions on attendance, Garrett seems to be trying to stifle dissent. The 5th Congressional District is the largest by area in Virginia and larger than the state of New Jersey, so holding a town hall where only 135 people are allowed to attend should not count as hearing the voices of his constituents. In such a large and diverse district, there will understandably be dissent over controversial decisions, and Garrett’s job is to hear about these concerns. The town hall’s current organization and structure is an insult to his constituents, who clearly have real concerns about how their healthcare coverage may change under the Republican’s replacement plan.
Garrett has clearly seen the angry town halls which have been occurring across the country over talks of repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act and does not want similar protests occurring in his town hall. Unfortunately, angry constituents and demonstrations are part of the job of being a congressman. Having the courage to be able to stick with controversial policy positions in front of his constituents is what he is supposed to do as a congressman. It is likely that he believes town halls with passionate citizens will force him to change his decision, as previous attendants of other town halls have forced other Republican members to reconsider a full repeal of the Affordable Care Act.
This event should not even be considered a town hall the way it is currently set up. The maneuvering with town halls, in conjunction with avoiding meetings with voters, makes it clear that Garrett has no interest in hearing out anyone with different views from his own. Instead of protecting himself from criticism, the congressman should find a different venue with more seats and an inclusive attendance policy. The University Democrats gave him this option when they announced through Facebook that they had booked a room with more seating on the same night as Garrett’s town hall.
In the end, this town hall debacle flies in the face of what a representative democracy should be. Garrett should keep in mind that the constituents who are being excluded from his town hall have a right to vote and will exercise that right in 2018.
Jacob Asch is a viewpoint writer for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.
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