Wyoming Rep. Harriet Hageman confronted an indignant crowd at a neighborhood city corridor on Wednesday, March 19, marking certainly one of a number of current incidents the place constituents have confronted Republican members of Congress concerning the Trump administration’s aggressive actions.
Hageman — who ousted incumbent Liz Cheney in a landslide victory within the 2022 election for the state’s solely congressional district — laughed aloud throughout the public occasion as a crowd of annoyed Wyomingites booed her reward for President Donald Trump and the Elon Musk-led Division of Authorities Effectivity.
“I voted in favor of the persevering with decision, or CR, which extends funding for the fiscal 12 months till September 30,” Hageman mentioned, prompting the booing to start. “It retains the lights on for President Trump and DOGE to proceed their work.”
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A neighborhood reporter with the Cowboy State Daily estimated that about three-quarters of the gang of greater than 500 attendees on the Laramie Plains Civic Middle have been there to protest Hageman.
The sophomore congresswoman ran in 2022 with the assist of Trump, following Cheney’s work as vice chair of the Home committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
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Michael Smith/Getty Pictures; AP Picture/Mary Schwalm Congresswoman Harriet Hageman (L) beat incumbent Liz Cheney (R) in Wyoming’s 2022 election.
At instances, Wednesday’s crowd devolved into chants of “Tax the wealthy!” and “January sixth!”’
However among the loudest reactions of the night time got here when the congresswoman talked about DOGE and Musk’s threats to chop Social Safety.
Trying to disregard the ruckus, Hageman advised the gang, “Through the persevering with decision, we’re not allowed to the touch Social Safety, so I might request that you simply truly watch some correct TV and skim legitimate information, as a result of that’s unfaithful.”
“It’s so weird to me how obsessed you might be with federal authorities,” she added.
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Donald Trump and Elon Musk at a SpaceX rocket launch on Nov. 19, 2024
Regardless of Trump’s repeated 2024 campaign promise to not reduce “one penny” from Social Safety, since taking workplace he’s referred to the federal government assist as a ”rip-off,” whereas Musk recently called it a “Ponzi scheme.”
“There’s a large quantity of fraud of, principally, individuals submitting Social Safety numbers for Social Safety advantages, unemployment, Small Enterprise Administration loans and medical care,” Musk mentioned in Fox Enterprise interview on March 10. “We’re attempting to place a cease to all of that.”
The altering rhetoric on Social Safety seemingly fueled the frustration towards Hageman for supporting Congress’ new funding plan, which has been criticized for giving Trump and Musk extra energy over the federal price range.
Reacting to her crowd’s anger, Hageman mentioned, “You guys are going to have a coronary heart assault for those who do not relax. I am sorry, your hysteria is simply actually excessive.”
Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg/Getty Harriet Hageman speaks on the 2022 Conservative Political Motion Convention
Wyoming residents aren’t the one individuals to get labored up about Musk’s affect on the present administration.
Home Republicans across the nation have confronted aggressive pushback at quite a few public appearances just lately, to the purpose {that a} nationwide GOP official urged them to cease internet hosting in-person city halls for concern of the optics, The New York Times reported in early March.
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Final week, Connecticut Rep. John Larson had a heated change together with his Republican colleagues on the Home Methods and Means Committee, berating them for blocking the unelected billionaire’s testimony on Social Safety cuts.
“The place’s the independence of the committee?” he yelled. “The place’s the legislature? We’re an equal department of presidency.”
Even “disgrace” couldn’t deliver Trump and Musk’s supporters to be trustworthy about their true plans, Larson claimed.
“[Musk has] been on tv the final couple of days speaking precisely about Social Safety, Medicare, and Medicaid, and what he intends to do: privatize it,” he continued. “The American individuals, a few of them might have been born at night time, however not final night time.”
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