House

House Democrat plans to attend town hall for GOP lawmaker

by Cristina Marcos - 05/08/17 3:30 PM ET

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.) is making good on his offer to attend a town hall meeting in the place of a Republican colleague who won’t be there.

Maloney plans to attend a town hall hosted by a local chapter of anti-President Trump group Indivisible in a neighboring New York district on Monday night in the place of Rep. John Faso (R-N.Y.), who represents that area.

The Indivisible chapter said it invited Faso to the Kingston, N.Y., town hall to explain his vote for the GOP’s healthcare bill last week, but he isn’t expected to attend.

Faso spokeswoman Courtney Weaver said Monday afternoon that the freshman lawmaker has a previously scheduled event on Monday night and never received an invitation to the Indivisible town hall.

“This is a purely partisan political rally,” Weaver said. “Now Maloney has reverted to form as a hyper-partisan seeking to advance himself in the eyes of his patrons in Albany and Washington. It’s sad.”

{mosads}Maloney appeared on MSNBC’s “Rachel Maddow Show” over the weekend and urged fellow Democrats to “adopt a district” and attend town halls for Republicans who won’t.

“Maybe a Democrat ought to go into every district where a Republican who supported TrumpCare won’t hold a town hall meeting, and do it for them,” Maloney said.

Maloney, who was first elected to the House in 2012, is one of 12 Democrats who represents a district won by President Trump. Maloney won reelection by 11 points in November, while Trump carried the district by 2 points.

Weaver noted that Maloney and Faso had appeared at a joint event at Marist College in April, where local news reports described the discussion as “amicable.”

At one point, Faso said, “it’s a pleasure to work with [Maloney],” according to the Poughkeepsie Journal. Their relationship appears to have fractured since then, with House passage of a bill to repeal and replace ObamaCare.

At least one other House Democrat has joined in on Maloney’s “adopt a district” challenge.

Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) announced he plans to attend a rally in Tucson on Tuesday to denounce fellow Arizona Rep. Martha McSally (R) for supporting the healthcare bill and to urge the state’s two Republican senators, John McCain and Jeff Flake, to oppose it.

McSally’s district went for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016 by 5 points over Trump.

Maloney’s idea to “adopt a district” started when Faso’s constituents, apparently unable to reach their representative, called his office on the day of the House vote on the GOP legislation to repeal and replace the healthcare law.

“Hey @RepJohnFaso could you turn your phones on? Your #NY19 constituents are calling my office. #Trumpcare” Maloney tweeted hours ahead of the vote.

A spokesman for the House GOP campaign arm dismissed Maloney’s plans to appear in a district that he doesn’t represent.

“Sean ‘MIA’ Maloney is preoccupied with scoring cheap political points while his constituents are left behind. Perhaps Maloney should spend less time lecturing people outside his district and more time listening to those in his own,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Chris Martin said.

Updated 4:32 p.m.

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