April 7, 2018

Republicans Are a No Show Across the Country for Town Halls on Gun Action

What a surprise.

The organizers of last month’s March for Our Lives have taken their movement to town halls across the country and invited congressional lawmakers—who have returned to their districts for a two-week recess—to discuss action on gun control. According to the Town Hall Project, more than 130 of these meetings are taking place, with most of the events happening on Saturday.

Though invited, no Republicans appeared at any town halls, and many of the forums featured empty chairs to symbolize their absences.

Mother Jones‘ Kara Voght attended the town hall at Virginia’s 10th congressional district, where every Democratic candidate seeking to unseat Republican incumbent Rep. Barbara Comstock showed up to discuss gun legislation. Comstock, unsurprisingly, refused to attend.

https://twitter.com/karavoght/status/982661276538146817

https://twitter.com/karavoght/status/982663557367189504

https://twitter.com/karavoght/status/982679340294041600

Here are some other highlights from around the country.

Let’s start in Glen Ellyn, Illinois:

Then go east to Natick, Massachusetts: 

Next stop, Fresno, California:

https://twitter.com/ricojfranco/status/982671428569845760

Then back to Buffalo, NY:

Also in New York, this from New York City:

In the midwest, there is a meeting in Ashtabula, Ohio:

https://twitter.com/BetsyRaderOH/status/982695011006537730

But it’s not as if Republicans failed to meet with constituents at all this week. Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) hosted a “coffee with constituents” event on Friday, pulled out a loaded gun, and said “I’m not going to be a Gabby Giffords”—referring to the Arizona Democrat who was shot outside a grocery store in 2011.

“I don’t mind dying,” Norman told the crowd, “but whoever shoots me better shoot well or I’m shooting back.”

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“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

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