Two of Oregon's Congressman Worked the Town Hall Circuit Hard Last Month. One Might Surprise You.

Ron Wyden has long been known for town halls. Critics have accused Greg Walden of ducking.

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
By Nigel Jaquiss

Last month, congressmen and women fanned out around the country to meet with constituents in town halls.

Many of those historically sleepy gatherings turned raucous, as elected officials faced a backlash against President Donald Trump and the threat of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act.

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon's senior senator, has long been known for holding town halls in each Oregon county each year.

But the state's only Republican congressman, U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-Hood River), has taken heat from Democrats for allegedly ducking constituents, particularly in Bend, the largest city in his district. Walden chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which is expected to lead whatever changes occur to the ACA.

U.S. Rep. Greg Walden

The Bend Bulletin took a look at assertions Walden was avoiding voters and found them untrue.

Now, The Hill, which covers Congress, has gone a step beyond the Bulletin's analysis and looked at all how many town halls each member of Congress held last month.

The Hill found that Wyden was the busiest of all 535 members of the Senate and House of Representatives but Walden—despite the complaints of his critics—was not far behind, ranking third.

Courtesy of The Hill

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