Sets May 4 Date for Town Hall in Westchester-JFK High School Somers
First Town Hall in Rockland Featured Many Unhappy Democrats
By Dan Murphy
As promised, Westchester Congressman Mike Lawler has begun his in person Town Hall discussions with residents of the 17th District. The first Town Hall was in Rockland County on April 27 at Clarkstown High School.
The next Town Hall will be in Westchester, at JFK High School in Somers on May 4.
The Rockland Town Hall was filled with 700 people, and based on the volume of supporters and opponents, the anti-Trump, anti-Lawler crowd won the day.
Before the debate, guests were screened to prove that they resided in the district. A large crowd of Lawler opponents and interest groups formed outside to express their continued opposition to Lawler and his votes in Congress to support the Trump agenda.
The first few minutes of the Town Hall were indicative of how the night would go. As Lawler just walked on the stage, there was a smattering of cheers and supporters, but a much larger number of boos and heckling towards Lawler.
Next up was the Pledge of Allegiance. But on this night, even the Pledge was not left out of bounds for screams from the audience. “Support the Constitution and Authoritarian,” were some of the comments heard drowning out the Pledge.
“Please tell me you’re not objecting to the Pledge of Allegiance,” said Lawler.
When asked about possible cuts to Medicaid, Lawler said, “When it comes to Medicaid, I have been very clear: I am not cutting benefits for any eligible recipient.”
With police in the room, the Town Hall avoided an explosive moment or incident. Confrontations with Lawler supporters and opponents in the audience did not get violent, which is one bit of satisfaction that can be drawn from the event.
But mostly, when Lawler attempted to explain his positions on the Trump tax cuts, or on tariffs, he was ignored by the boisterous crowd, who did not want to hear his answers.
When audience members again and again yelled ““Tax the Rich,” Lawler explained. “Folks, taxing the rich is not going to close our budget deficit.”
With a response from the crowd, “Just do it anyway,” which got a few laughs.
The upcoming Town Hall in Somers should be just as interesting. What the Town Halls show is the opportunity that democrats, both locally and across the country, see in defeating Lawler in 2026. Only five seats will be needed to switch from R to D to give the House back to the democrats, and Lawler is one of the most vulnerable, and sits in a congressional district that voted Harris for President.
But Lawler took the blows, did not blow his top, and responded with intelligent answers to questions, even if most refused to hear them.
Considering how deeply divided the country, and the people of the 17th Congressional district are, some wonder if the hostility lashed out at Lawler from democrats and progressives helps the cause of defeating the two-term Congressman.
Lawler won his first election in 2022 by 1,820 votes. In 2024, Lawler got 52% of the vote and won by 20,000. Turnout was way up in 2024 (Presidential year) but Lawler’s margin of victory was more
How many of the 375,000 voters who voted for an against Lawler are undecided, or willing to vote for either party’s candidate in 2026? 5,000? 10,000?
Watch the Town Hall below
