Republican Jewish Lawmaker Cancels Town Hall, Citing Protests

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By Daniel J. Solomon February 15, 2017

Lee Zeldin, Congress’ lone Jewish Republican, has canceled an April town hall event, after protesters disrupted a recent appearance of his at a Long Island, New York rotary club.

“This meeting was co-opted, renamed and re-branded by a group of liberal activists who were already holding strategy meetings to turn it into a disruptive show for their own political theater,” Jennifer DiSiena, a spokeswoman for the congresswoman, explained to the Southampton Press.

She further alleged that demonstrators at last week’s Rotary Club event had crossed a line by obstructing vehicular traffic and banging on people’s cars, a charge that protest organizers denied.

“Regardless of his intentions, Mr. Zeldin has an obligation to explain his lack of availability and to begin direct communication with constituents,” said the organizers of the Rotary Club event, after news of the cancellation broke.

Republican House members have been facing hostile audiences at town halls, as progressive activists adopt the tactics of the Tea Party as part of a drive to preserve Obamacare and defeat President Donald Trump’s agenda. Many congressmen have responded to the wave of protest activity by canceling events or scheduling fewer.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

Daniel J. Solomon is the former Assistant to the Editor/News Writer at the Forward. Originally from Queens, he attended Harvard as an undergraduate, where he wrote his senior thesis on French-Jewish intellectual history. He is excited to have returned to New York after his time in Massachusetts. Daniel’s passions include folk music, cycling, and pointed argument.

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