Back on March 7, Bluestem posted Town hall with "garbage" constituents? Heavens no. But Center of American Experiment will interview Fischbach March 20 in Ottertail.
Seems her constituents in Minnesota's Seventh Congressional District want a town hall, as I'd noted in subsequent posts here: Digest: MN07 press, residents and state DFL to Fischbach, "Listen to your constituents" and Upset MN07 Rep. Fischbach is following GOP script in avoiding town halls, constituents respond with meetings, signs, postcards.
So how did Thursday's meeting go for the powerful think tank and the Republican congresswoman?
At the Minnesota Star Tribune, Jenny Berg reports in At ticketed event, Rep. Michelle Fischbach gets questions about federal funding cuts, tariffs:
Attendees at the Thursday event were outnumbered by the protesters outside the Ottertail resort.
OTTERTAIL, MINN. – U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach made a rare public appearance in her western Minnesota district Thursday, but it wasn’t the free-for-all town hall that many constituents were hoping for.
The Republican House member spoke and answered questions before about 140 registered guests, who each paid $10 to attend what was billed as a conversation hosted by the Minnetonka-based conservative think tank Center of the American Experiment.
But they were outnumbered by the protesters who lined the road outside the grounds of Thumper Pond Resort in Ottertail. And the group inside included more than a dozen who clearly took issue with Fischbach — some of whom interrupted her with questions about federal funding cuts and were asked by organizers to be quiet or leave. . . .
Outside, the protesters hoisted signs and chanted “Throw the fish back,” a play on Fischbach’s name. Madalyn Pretzer, 24, of Morris, brought a tater tot hot dish and wild rice soup to keep them warm and fed. . . .
Read the rest at the Strib.
A CD7 county DFL party posted on its Facebook page:
The Detriot Lakes/ Perham Focus's Barbie Porter reports a somewhat smaller protest crowd--and ticketed attendees in About 160 people show to protest as U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach answers questions at ticketed event:
'. . . Oftentimes, Fischbach was interrupted by attendees, who felt she was not answering the question or had not provided a full truth with her answer.
Of the 70-plus people in attendance at the event, about seven people were asked to leave the conference room for being disruptive, while more than a dozen vocally disagreed with what Fischbach was saying. At times, people also laughed.
Those who wanted to hear Fischbach did not appear amused, and at times told those speaking over Fischbach to “shut up,” “sit down” or were simply shushed.
. . .In recent weeks protests have been staged outside Fischbach's offices in Moorhead and Willmar . Fischbach called the Moorhead protests "garbage" and said she thinks the protesters likely live outside of her district and were possibly being paid to protest, according to reporting from The Forum.
A more in-depth story with Fischbach’s responses to questions, as well as interviews with protesters, will be available Friday, March 21.
I'm certainly looking forward to that article, especially given the fact that the DL Tribune and Perham Focus are both part of the Forum Communications network, which includes about a half dozen newspapers throughout the district, from Worthington to Willmar to Moorhead (Fargo Forum).
Photo: Protestors outside of Thumpers Pond. Source: Polk County Minnesota DFL Facebook page.
Related posts
- Upset MN07 Rep. Fischbach is following GOP script in avoiding town halls, constituents respond with meetings, signs, postcards
- Digest: MN07 press, residents and state DFL to Fischbach, "Listen to your constituents"
- Town hall with "garbage" constituents? Heavens no. But Center of American Experiment will interview Fischbach March 20 in Ottertail
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