On a few occasions in the second Trump presidency, Republican elected officials have held town halls where their constituents have confronted them angrily. One recent incident in California may have been the strongest reaction yet.
Per CNN, Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) “drew taunts and jeers” at a pair of town hall events this week. Most of it was directed at the Congressman’s support for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The two town halls took place in Chico and Red Bluff, both in the Congressman’s Northern California district.
“At both town halls, LaMalfa was pressed over how Trump’s agenda, which includes historic cuts to federal support for the social safety net, would affect rural hospitals, particularly those in his district. Other attendees asked questions about transparency around the so-called Jeffrey Epstein files,” the CNN story said.
Others chanted “shame” at him.
GOP Rep. Doug LaMalfa tried to defend Trump Big Bullshit Bill onstage in his home district last night. Let’s see how that went: pic.twitter.com/ApZ36zqsc2
— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) August 13, 2025
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On another occasion, a constituent invoked fascist regimes when denouncing the president’s “ICE armies.”
During an Aug. 11 town hall in Chico, a constituent compared U.S. immigration enforcement to fascist regimes and questioned whether Rep. Doug LaMalfa’s name would be linked with authoritarian figures.
CHICO TOWN HALL: https://t.co/wSlg4Msun5
READ MORE: https://t.co/myrIz3EoeI pic.twitter.com/yQccjQQckC— KRCR News Channel 7 (@KRCR7) August 11, 2025
“If you’re not here to either announce your resignation, why aren’t you here to apologize to the farmers of the north state because of your support for the Trump tariffs?,” one audience member asked at the Chico town hall. Other voters demanded that Trump be impeached.
Also in the town halls, the Congressman said that he does not support the current redistricting pushes, either the one being pushed by Republicans in Texas, or the one being threatened by California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom.
“It’s really ugly and no matter which side of the aisle you’re on, it doesn’t look good. It doesn’t give you more faith in the political process if legislators draw the lines merely to have an outcome for a partisan win,” he said.
It’s not clear if the people showing up to protest are from the Congressman’s district, or if they represent any particular organized group.
Photo courtesy of an X screenshot.
