It tuned into who could shout the loudest and in the end, nothing seemed to get accomplished.
US Rep. Jason Chaffetz was met with boos and jeers by a rowdy crowd at a town hall in his home district on Thursday.
The Utah congressman, head of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was repeatedly interrupted and confronted with angry questions from a mostly liberal crowd about why he wasn’t holding President Donald Trump more accountable, especially after his aggressive role in investigating Hillary Clinton.
Cong Chaffetz Town Hall crowd chanting “Do your job!” He’s having a hard time answering over crowd noise @UtahIndivisible @IndivisibleTeam pic.twitter.com/gO0BXybGy5
— Kyung Lah (@KyungLahCNN) February 10, 2017
Many in the audience held signs that read “Agree” or “Disagree” and seemed to have a negative reaction to almost anything the congressman said.
This teacher just schooled @jasoninthehouse on #DonaldTrump during #ChaffetzTownHall pic.twitter.com/YRabGToB2q
— Mike Carney (((?))) (@carneymike) February 10, 2017
HUGE cheers — then a “do your job!” chant — when #Chaffetz is asked why he’s not conducting oversight on Trump to match Clinton’s. pic.twitter.com/CfzUgKbJeH
— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) February 10, 2017
Chaffetz is taking a lot of heat for holding Hillary to a different standard than he is Trump. #chaffetztownhall #TheResistance
— Jesse Stark (@StopNuclearWar) February 10, 2017
The level of engagement from the angry liberal base in deep-red Utah seemed surprising.
UT typically known as most genteel state in the West. Cong Chaffetz not seeing that tonight @UtahIndivisible @IndivisibleTeam pic.twitter.com/jC7PvL5dkr
— Kyung Lah (@KyungLahCNN) February 10, 2017
People I think don’t understand how big the #chaffetztownhall blow up was. I’ve never seen anything like that in Utah all my life. Ever.
— PutridMeat (@PutridMeat) February 10, 2017
A group named Utah Indivisble seemed well represented as a CNN reporter dutifully noted.
Packed house for UT Cong Chaffetz @jasoninthehouse‘s town hall. Most appear to be anti-Chaffetz/anti-Trump @UtahIndivisible pic.twitter.com/GVHT0PuZh2
— Kyung Lah (@KyungLahCNN) February 10, 2017
To all politicians
Where ever u appear,
We the people will b there,
showing u what democracy looks like #TheResistance #ChaffetzTownHall pic.twitter.com/0ny2jrOOY7— Penny K™ ? ❄️ (@feastorafamine) February 10, 2017
This is so encouraging. A model for every town hall in the nation for the next 2, 4, 6, 8 years – whatever it takes. Bravo @UtahIndivisible https://t.co/nor80g3BF5
— Jennifer Hayden (@Scout_Finch) February 10, 2017
The group, calling itself a local, grassroots “resistance to the Trump agenda,” thanked those who came out to the event in a tweet after the town hall.
Thank you to everyone for showing up. Want to mention a few things that happened at the town hall that probably won’t get a lot of coverage
— Utah Indivisible (@UtahIndivisible) February 10, 2017
Other questions directed at Chaffetz came from some who seemed to have a deeper agenda, and reportedly brought up Dem mega donor George Soros, who has been widely alleged to be financing large scale protests.
If you have to announce unprompted “I was not paid by Soros to be here,” you were totally paid by Soros to be here. https://t.co/sqgt3uh5vf
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) February 10, 2017
“If you want to continue to look into Hillary Clinton, I don’t care,” a Democratic activist and a delegate to the Democratic National Convention named Noor Ul-Hasan asked Chaffetz, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. “But why aren’t you checking out your own president?”
“You’re really not going to like this part,” Chaffetz replied. “The president, under the law, is exempt from conflict of interest laws.”
Again, #Chaffetz says he wants Trump to release his tax returns, “but it is not required by law.” Reaction: pic.twitter.com/KF6rX8Ei3J
— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) February 10, 2017
Over a thousand people attempted to pack into the auditorium of Brighton High School, causing the fire Marshall to step in and leave about 1,500 more people outside waving signs reading, “Do your job” and “America is better than this,” the Tribune reported. The crowd chanted “bring him out” as anger erupted over the lack of space to accommodate everyone.
Chaffetz tries to cool the crowd down after shouts he didn’t answer the first question. “Relax, relax,” #Chaffetz says. The crowd boos.
— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) February 10, 2017
800 people outside the Jason Chaffetz town hall who can’t make it in because the auditorium is full, chanting “you work for us!” pic.twitter.com/VPhjbYC5iZ
— JT Olds (@jtolds) February 10, 2017
The 75-minute town hall was filled with tense exchanges between Chaffetz and the crowd who peppered the lawmaker with questions about Trump’s taxes and conflicts of interest, his own initiatives to transfer or sell public lands and his position on immigration and refugees.
“Explain yourself,” the audience yelled, and chanted “Do your job.”
And here comes the Oversight question. Crowd goes WILD. “DO YOUR JOB!” #ChaffetzTownHall
— Scott Renshaw (@scottrenshaw) February 10, 2017
#Chaffetz, urging fewer jeers: “Folks, I get one sentence into it, you say I’m not answering the question – I AM answering the q, OK?” Then: pic.twitter.com/VUUDc3Toau
— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) February 10, 2017
“If you want me to answer the question, give me more than five seconds to do it,” Chaffetz said, answering a total of 13 questions, three focused on public lands and four on investigating Trump. Other questions ranged from from Planned Parenthood to air quality to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.
#Chaffetz says he wants to eliminate Education Department. “I want to get rid of Betsy DeVos!”
Man in crowd: “We want to get rid of you!” pic.twitter.com/tQHbZSceU5
— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) February 10, 2017
What we’re seeing/hearing at the #ChaffetzTownHall is what happens when a Congressman’s constituents are fed up with him NOT doing his job.
— Chet Powell (@ChetPowell) February 10, 2017
Chaffetz stood on his previously stated position that Trump, as president, is exempt from conflict of interest laws and that he would not abuse his authority as committee chairman to go on a “fishing expedition.”
“Until there is evidence that [Trump] has somehow overused that to ingratiate his family …” he said before boos drowned him out.
The boos reportedly continued even after Chaffetz left the stage.
#Chaffetz out. Town hall over
— Kyung Lah (@KyungLahCNN) February 10, 2017
Hillary Clinton endured an 11-hour Benghazi hearing.
Chaffetz left his town hall 40 minutes early.#ChaffetzTownHall
— Impeach Donald Trump (@Impeach_D_Trump) February 10, 2017
Hillary “endured” an 11-hour Benghazi hearing? Shameful.
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