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U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, both Democrats, hosted their first town hall in the region since Trump’s return to office and heard a wave of confusion and frustration from constituents. That’s been the trend nationally over the past several weeks as members of Congress returned home amid a wave of cuts and policy changes by the new Republican administration.
“We can always find smarter, better ways to do things, like around the FAFSA (Free Application for Student Aid) rollout, you know, that could have been a heck of a lot better,” Bonamici said, “but you don’t just lay people off without a plan or without an understanding of the consequences of the layoffs.”
As a senior member of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, Bonamici said education is one of her top priorities. The congresswoman recently introduced a resolution advocating for the protection of local public schools and condemning attempts to defund public education.
Town halls Bonamici and Merkley held in Oregon last week were packed and their offices are being flooded regularly with messages from constituents. Merkley’s office has been receiving over 2,000 calls a day. Bonamici’s office received around 6,000 emails in just one week.
On this Presidents Day night, a day that saw the Trump Administration fire FAA workers and the head of Social Security step down over the Department of Government Efficiency requests to access Social Security recipient information, about 700 people filed into the gym at Century High School in Hillsboro for a town hall with US Rep. Suzanne Bonamici.
Democratic members of Oregon’s congressional delegation say they are looking for ways to keep Trump in check.
“I want to say to concerned Oregonians, we are going to do all we can to stop this short sighted, dangerous anti-science agenda,” U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici said.
Bonamici said the grant reductions would kill people. “People will die if Trump and Musk go through with these cuts,” she said.
U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley joined Rep. Suzanne Bonamici in calling the proposal illegal since Congress already approved the funds. Merkley said the cuts have “life and death stakes.”
WASHINGTON, DC [2/14/25] – Today Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01) announced a series of five town hall meetings across the First Congressional District, which includes large portions of Washington and Multnomah counties and all of Clatsop, Tillamook, and Columbia counties.