Facing voter discontent, lawmakers skip town halls

[xchrom]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DECLINING_TOWN_HALLS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-09-02-13-12-24

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) -- Some lawmakers abandoned the recess ritual of town halls this summer as they faced widespread voter discontent.

Some cited security in the aftermath of the shooting that severely wounded Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords at a meet-and-greet event in January. Others blamed grass-roots groups for commandeering the town halls. Still others opted for smaller, sometimes private or paid events.

Whatever the excuse, the dearth of meetings has sparked criticism that lawmakers are dodging constituents when Congress faces abysmal poll numbers. An Associated Press-GFK poll shows 87 percent of Americans disapprove of lawmakers' job performance.



***personally i think the old school dems showing up & asking tough questions on jobs & tax cuts are the reason.

[Fumesucker]

1. "Some cited security as they raffled off a replica of the weapon used to shoot Gabrielle Giffords."

However since they did not include a high capacity magazine in the raffle clearly it was just an innocent faux pas.

[dgibby]

2. IIRC,

CNN reported yesterday that 3 magazines + ammo are included in the auction.

[xchrom]

3. +1