1 week Ago
Third Congressional District U.S. Rep.
Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, held a town hall in Centralia Tuesday, April 22. The event, which was held in the TransAlta Commons at Centralia College, gave Gluesenkamp Perez a chance to respond to written questions from the audience that were submitted in the lobby beforehand. The event was moderated by Republican Lewis County Commissioner Scott Brummer, who read the questions for the congresswoman and the audience.
The event quickly erupted into bouts of heckling and shouts from the crowd as Gluesenkamp Perez attempted to respond to the second question of the evening, which asked the congresswoman why she voted in support of the SAVE Act and if she was supporting President Donald Trump’s agenda. The legislation would enact election reform that would require Americans to provide documents proving American citizenship when registering to vote. In response, Gluesenkamp Perez defended her vote, saying that her support reflected her view that Americans broadly support the idea of voter identification.
She added that, even with her support, the bill has too many problems to make it through Congress. “I think it’s really important to know, like at its core, this is a bill that talks about having voter ID, and 84% of Americans support having voter ID,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. The response quickly led to shouts from the crowd labeling the bill an attempt at voter suppression and expressing outrage that the representative would support legislation that she called “flawed.
” The congresswoman received a similar response from the crowd when answering a question about her vote in support of censuring U.S. Rep.
Al Green, D-Texas, who represents Texas’ Ninth Congressional District, which covers the southern part of the Houston metro area. Green was censured by the U.S.
House of Representatives in early March after interrupting President Trump’s joint address to the U.S. Congress.
Gluesenkamp Perez attempted to defend her vote to censure Green, saying that she believed it was the right choice and upheld the rules of the U.S. Congress.
“Part of what makes this country great is that we have a system of rules and laws and standards that we hold up regardless of who is in office,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. “What makes civil disobedience work is that you are not just waving away the rules when you agree with the person, but that that person's civil disobedience is actually still targeting the system itself. But that said, I don't think that our national interest is served by normalizing corrosive political language and fighting.
” When audience members asked why she hadn’t voted to censure other members of Congress in the past, such as U.S. Rep.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, she said she would have if a censuring bill had made it to the floor. As Brummer attempted to quiet the crowd, one person stood and shouted in outrage, receiving applause from some attendees before being removed from the event. Law enforcement confronted the attendee, Michael P.
Pishner, 24, of Shoreline, for disrupting a lawful assembly before arresting him and taking him to the Chehalis Tribal Jail for obstructing a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest. More pointed questions followed, often receiving outraged responses from the audience and occasional applause. Subjects included Southwest Washington Republican Joe Kent’s involvement in a recent Signal group chat that leaked sensitive information to a journalist, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and possible cuts to Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare.
Throughout the event, Gluesenkamp Perez frequently returned to talking points on bipartisan cooperation, local impacts and building a “positive policy agenda.” She also highlighted some of her own bills currently in Congress aimed at policy giving consumers the right to repair equipment and supporting vocational education programs. “I don't think any of us are going to go to our graves and carve Democrat or Republican into it.
I think it's a mistake to put your personal values below a political agenda. Like, our personal values should transcend that agenda and guide it,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. “We should not be choosing between the values and the politics of a party.
We should be saying, what is in the interest of our community? What is the interest of my neighbor?” In her closing remarks, Gluesenkamp Perez thanked the crowd for their attendance and attempted to validate attendees for their anger while urging her constituents to get involved with their community and speak with their neighbors about their common goals. “People are valid in being angry,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. “But who we do need to be nice to is our neighbors, and figuring out how do we build the biggest team possible to fight for the things that we really believe in? Talk to folks that you don't agree with.
You know, build relationships. Volunteer at your school library.” As the town hall came to an end, Brummer invited attendees to write down any further questions and give them to the congressman's staff.
Gluesenkamp Perez left quickly after the event ended. As attendees moved around the TransAlta Commons after the event some expressed frustration with the congresswoman, saying they didn't feel like she answered their questions. Others said they were upset by the regular interruptions from the crowd.
“I just feel like no questions got answered. There was a lot of talking and circular talking, but no actually answering of questions,” Bethany Bishop, a Lewis County resident, said. “I was hoping for some clear answers on what she is doing to try to effectuate change.
” Another local, Scott Tennant, from Chehalis, echoed the feelings of others who were frustrated by the behavior of attendees during the event, but he added that he was pleased that the congresswoman addressed his question about Kent and the use of the Signal messaging app for matters of national security. “She answered my question, and I was very much impressed with that,” Tennant said. “But I, too, thought the disruptions were uncalled for, because I've always been able to contact her and her office and get a response from her, as other people I know have not.
” Those interested can find more information about the representative at https://gluesenkampperez.house.gov.
The congresswoman will next hold a town hall at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Luepke Community Center in Vancouver.
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