Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who recently faced a heated group of constituents at a town hall in his home state of Utah, said Tuesday that attendees intended to “bully and intimidate” him.
“They’re welcome to come yell and scream,” Chaffetz said on the Kilmeade and Friends radio program. “I thought it was intended to bully and intimidate. But, the last four elections in Utah in a row I’ve won the widest margin of anybody playing at this level.”
An estimated 1,000 people attended the congressman’s town hall in suburban Salt Lake City. Republicans this month have faced hostile town hall crowds made up of constituents upset with President Donald Trump’s administration. When asked if the town hall attendees were from his district, Chaffetz said he believed most were from his state.
“I think most are from Utah, but, you know, when you get that many people and you compare it to the 200-and-almost-10,000 votes that I got, yeah there’s gonna be some that didn’t vote for me. A lot — 25% of the vote — so it’s fine. It’s six weeks after the election. They’re welcome to come to the meeting, I thought it was a bit over the [top] — the continuous yelling and screaming and not allowing the dialogue. I went there so I could hear dissent and have a discussion about the issues, but that’s not what they were interested in.”
