'Hard to feel safe': Rep. Porter says town hall altercation erodes sense of security
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'Hard to feel safe': Rep. Porter says town hall altercation erodes sense of security
"They began to shout and eventually violence broke out," Porter said Monday night on MSNBC. "It was really disappointing and scary, especially for families and seniors and others who were there, and I think we need to hear from every elected official regardless of party that this is not democracy."
Members of Congress are approaching an extended recess in August, a time traditionally used by lawmakers to meet with constituents and hold town halls. After the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, lawmakers have expressed increased concern about safety in their districts.
"It's incredibly disappointing to have it happen here," Porter said on Monday. "After Jan. 6, it's hard to feel safe in Washington right now and now it's hard to feel safe in Irvine."
The House appropriated funds to bolster the Capitol Police, who are tasked with coordinating security for lawmakers while they are outside of Washington, but the bill has stalled in the Senate .
Irvine Police said in a statement that officers were at the event and arrested Julian Willis of La Jolla, Calif.
“There were opposing opinions at the town hall. It got heated and punches were thrown. One man received a bloody nose. The suspect was arrested, given a citation and released from the scene,” Irvine Police said.
Porter said the event was held in an outdoor area that allowed people to remain spread out but also allowed the protesters to disrupt the event.
“While I absolutely respect their right to disagree, their disturbance disrespected all the families who attended and were ready to engage in a thoughtful, civil and safe way,” she said in the statement.
Nick Taurus, who’s running against Porter in the 2022 midterm election, posted on his Instagram account several days before the town hall urging his supporters to join his campaign in confronting Porter. Taurus told his followers to appear at the town hall event held at the Mike Ward Community Park.
"Katie Porter is a far-left ideologue supported by Bay Area academics, the billionaire class and foreign lobbies! Her America Last policies are awful for the 45th district and we intend to voice our displeasure!” he wrote, telling his supporters to “to demand AMERICA BE PUT FIRST and send Carpetbagger Katie back to the Iowa farm she came from! TOGETHER WE WILL DEFEAT THE GLOBALISTS!
The scuffle Sunday broke out when Taurus’ backers shouted “Carpetbagger Katie!” and “Corrupt Katie Porter” and the congresswoman’s supporters tried to drown them out by chanting, “Katie! Katie! Katie!” or screaming, “Shut up!” the L.A. Times reported. Punches were then thrown and men fell to the ground, the report said.
Taurus describes himself on his campaign website as “an American nationalist and Roman Catholic who is most concerned with addressing the issues surrounding immigration, vaccination and Critical Race Theory.”
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Here is a bit more information on Taurus and it's not impressive.
I think this is a poorly written article. The way it reads, Katie Porter seems to be blaming Jan 6th for the increased concerns about security. I feel confident that Steve Scalise and Gabby Giffords would have something to say about this. This to me is more partisan politics to keep blaming Republicans for all of Jan 6th
Good point.
For example, many people are saying you shouldn't blame Mike Pense.
(Despite the harsh criticism he received from Trump, He's actually a Republican!)
And a conservative Republican at that!
In fact, many of the insurgents were chanting "Hang Mike Pense", Hang Mike Pense!
They even brought a gallows to scene!!!
Don't think that anything in my comment at #4 is an excuse for any of the idiots who stormed the Capital. No way in hell. I'm talking explicitly about this article and the way it reads to me.
Well, you're wrong about that.
This to me is more partisan politics to keep blaming Republicans for all of Jan 6th
Exactly, they're exaggerating and exploiting this protest for political points