District 19 constituents held a town hall meeting Saturday, after accusing Congressman Jodey Arrington of not hosting one.
During the “week off” from Washington, many lawmakers return to their districts to meet with constituents.
Arrington (R-TX, 19th District), told EverythingLubbock.com his pre-arranged schedule did not allow for an open forum with residents on his trip to Lubbock.
The Saturday meeting was hosted by local predominately democratic organizations. It was estimated that about 100 people attended.
“I know that the Congressman has said that he wants to do something like this in the future,” said organizer TG Caraway. “But, one thing he did say is that he wants to have it like 10 or 15 people, have it in one of his areas and there would be no press and nobody recording anything. You know, I just feel like this is part of their job description and they should be showing up and having town halls with their constituents.”
“It’s up to the Congressman to come to these or not,” Caraway said. “I think as you can tell, there’s a lot of people upset that he’s not here. I’m upset that he’s not here. I would think that you would want to be representing your constituents and listen to their concerns.”
Arrington responded to the meeting with a statement.
“I think it’s important for elected officials to meet with all their constituents — people who agree with them and people who don’t,” Arrington said. “This week, I have had a full schedule of meetings with local farmers, ranchers, healthcare providers, small business owners, civic leaders and families who care deeply about our country.”
“The majority of people want to have an open and honest dialogue with their elected representatives, but you’ve got an organized effort of a few to disrupt. That’s their stated mission,” he added. His office cited a group that “morphed from Barack Obama’s first presidential campaign, that combined with others to form the Indivisible Project.
“When they do that, they don’t just inhibit my ability to communicate with these folks; they inhibit the constituents’ ability to share their thoughts and concerns with me. It becomes a nonconstructive environment,” Arrington’s statement concluded.
“I think (Arrington) should show up and answer questions from all of his constituents, because, just because we might not have voted for him in November doesn’t mean that he’s not our representative in Washington,” Caraway said on Friday.
