Via press release from Gathering for Democracy
LEXINGTON, March 22 — About 900 concerned Kentuckians filled the Kentucky Theatre beyond its seating capacity today for a town hall to which Rep. Andy Barr (R- Lexington) was invited but didn’t attend. Gathering for Democracy, a cross-partisan organization concerned about policies being implemented in Washington DC, sponsored the event, moderated by former Lexington Vice Mayor Steve Kay.
Attendees filled out cards with accounts of how the budget cuts and firings of federal employees affected them. About 30 people stood to speak about their concerns.
One woman said the closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development had caused the cessation of a U.S. funded school and health clinic in a poor neighborhood in Ecuador. “Twenty years of goodwill and building health is now stymied,” she said.
The daughter of a deceased World War II veteran said, “recently, many veteran government employees were fired because of (Elon) Musk,” and that many more were at risk of losing their jobs as well. She asked what Barr planned to do “to stand up for veterans who are being hurt by the Trump administration.”
Another attendee noted that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had suggested not sending next month’s Social Security payments in order to identify fraudsters, because, he said, “only fraudsters would complain.” The attendee said this was “a perfect illustration of how out of touch these billionaires are with real people who depend on Social Security to pay for food, medicine and housing.”
People who attended the town hall were encouraged to be civil and courteous. And they were, contrary to a Barr staffer’s claim that they were “paid liberal activists,” who planned to engage Barr in a “shouting match.” No one was paid. The staffer also falsely claimed that Gathering for Democracy staged the event “without coordination with our office.” Event organizers contacted Barr’s Washington and Lexington offices several times.
Even though Barr staffers told the organizers that Barr would not attend the town hall, a chair and a microphone were set up for him on the Kentucky Theater’s stage on the off chance he might change his mind.
This peaceful, respectful platform gave voice to these Kentuckians’ concerns. A video of the event, along with hand-written cards collected from attendees will be delivered to Rep. Barr this week, so he will have an opportunity to hear and read the cards from his constituents.
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