It's 2017 all over again, except Republicans are not playing along this time.
Following President Donald Trump's first inauguration in 2017, left-wing activists packed congressional town hall meetings throughout the country in an apparent effort to create the perception there was a grassroots resistance to the new administration.
In Alabama, then-U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Fairhope) was subject to such hijinks.
This time around, Alabama's Republican congressional delegation does not appear interested in allowing those groups to have the opportunity to create propaganda to further a far-left political agenda.
Friday, a report from AL(dot) com's John Sharp cited Susan Griffin, a representative from the Soros-back Indivisible, as one of the petitioners demanding U.S. Rep. Dale Strong (R-Monrovia) participate in her organization's propaganda-gathering endeavor.
"He's not even making a statement to allay people's fears," Griffin said, according to the AL(dot)com article.
As reported earlier by 1819 News' Daniel Taylor, disrupting Republican town halls is a major component of Indivisible's and other similar groups' strategy, noting the group is demanding more town hall meetings and is following through on its threats for more protests now that the March recess is underway.
"Indivisibles and allies put Republicans on notice during the first recess of the year by organizing nearly 200 events across the country and directly challenging them for supporting billionaires like Elon Musk over their own constituents," Indivisible's "Musk or Us Town Hall Recess Toolkit" reads. "...For the March recess, we need to go even bigger."
The toolkit tells organizers to request a town hall meeting with their representatives. If a Republican lawmaker does not show up, hold the town hall as an "empty" town hall.
"We're calling on every Republican to host a public town hall and face the constituents whose benefits they're pushing to eliminate," Indivisible stated. "Even if they're receiving marching orders to avoid public events at all costs, it's up to us to demand them — and if they refuse, we'll be ready to organize impactful events that spotlight their absence."
According to comments given to AL(dot)com by Sean Phillips, identified as a "constituent" in the piece but is also an active participant on Indivisble's social media page, that is what they intend to do if Strong does not show up to the organization's town hall meeting.
"If Republican U.S. Rep. Dale Strong doesn't make it, Phillips is prepared to leave an empty chair in his place," Sharp wrote.
Indivisible also pledged to reimburse groups for "eligible expenses associated with your Musk or Us actions" up to $200.
Jeff Poor is the editor-in-chief of 1819 News and host of "The Jeff Poor Show," heard Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-noon on Mobile's FM Talk 106.5. To connect or comment, email [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @jeff_poor.
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