In one of the first town halls since House Republicans narrowly passed President Donald Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” that would gut Medicaid and SNAP, force cuts to Medicare, and provide tax cuts that largely benefit the wealthy, U.S. Rep. Mike Flood, a Republican of Nebraska, was showered with criticism.
Constituents in the auditorium expressed anger over cuts to the social safety net and incursions against America’s system of checks and balances, as KMTV reported. The local Nebraska outlet called the event “hostile.” Rep. Flood was repeatedly asked why he and the GOP Congress are not standing up to President Trump.
“At what point—even though you’re a Republican and he is a Republican—are you willing t0 break with him?” one constituent asked. “What does he have to do?”
“My question is regarding your oath of office,” declared another audience member (video below). “So you have sworn to uphold and defend the Constitution from enemies, both foreign and domestic. And you’ve up until now abdicated all of your rights as Congress to the executive branch. And if you don’t act as a check and balance on the executive branch, when they are in violation, not only of the Constitution, but also of judicial orders, what exactly is the purpose of Congress? Why do you even exist?”
Other constituents were equally challenging.
“There’s a dichotomy between what you do and what you say when you come up here on stage, and what you vote for,” charged a constituent. “So, like today, you say, ‘Oh, this is the number one most important thing.’ But you voted for a bill that increases the deficit by $4 trillion.”
“You say, “Oh, I care about the rule of law, but you voted for a bill that contains a provision that would gut the checks the judicial branch has, and you didn’t even read it?” he added. “It’s ridiculous.”
“Why should we trust you when you come out of here and say things, but then you vote against the things that you say that you care about, that you believe in?”
On the $800 billion cuts to Medicaid in the bill Flood voted for, he insisted that most Nebraskans will not be affected, unlike, he alleged, states like California, which allows undocumented immigrants to access the program. The cuts to Medicaid are also expected to be achieved, in part, by imposing stricter work requirements.
“Question for the audience,” Flood declared, according to NBC News, “do you want illegal immigrants to get tax-funded benefits?”
“Yes,” was the crowd’s loud response. Flood replied: “I would say that is not the majority opinion of most Nebraskans, however. Next question.”
Flood also received harsh criticism for voting for the portion of the bill that makes it far more difficult for judges to hold parties in contempt of court — a provision some believe was designed to help President Trump.
The Nebraska Republican was forced to admit that he had not read that part of the bill, as NBC News also reported.
“This provision was unknown to me when I voted for the bill,” Flood told his constituents, to “loud yells” from the audience.
“I am not going to hide the truth,” he continued. “This provision was unknown to me when I voted for that, and when I found out that provision was in the bill, I immediately reached out to my Senate counterparts and told them of my concern.”
NBC noted that “Flood’s words did not calm attendees, who continued their shouting.”
KLKN spoke with several attendees after the town hall.
“I’m not sure how truthful he really was,” said one.
“Never spoken to that man until I came to these town halls, and he doesn’t listen,” said another.
Watch the video below.
