Republicans are planning to go to war around the country to defend President Donald Trump's tax megabill that extended tax cuts for the rich while cutting more than $1 trillion from Medicaid, food assistance and green energy programs.
But the National Republican Congressional Committee is conspicuously omitting one traditional method of constituent messaging from their strategy, according to Politico which reported on an internal memo Tuesday.
"The memo reveals how the party hopes to communicate a potential vulnerability ahead of next year’s midterms. In particular, the NRCC wants members to cast the bill’s Medicaid cuts — already a top target of Democrats — as an overhaul that will strengthen the program," said the report.
"In addition to Medicaid, the NRCC urged its members to highlight tax relief, immigration, business reforms and 'holding elites accountable.'" The memo further instructs GOP lawmakers to be on the lookout for Democratic "trackers," or operatives posing as journalists or constituents to try to embarrass them on hot mic."
However, the memo does not urge members to hold town halls with their constituents — a typical method of communication for members of Congress on important issues.
Earlier this year, amid a wave of anger being directed at GOP lawmakers at town halls even in deep red districts, another memo specifically told Republican members to stop holding town halls, with the excuse that Democratic operatives were allegedly infiltrating them for sabotage. Democrats, in turn, have seized on this retreat in their messaging, with some even holding their own town halls in Republican districts where constituents weren't able to question their lawmaker.
That doesn't appear to have changed, with NRCC chair Richard Hudson (R-NC) telling members last week, “Democrats are still pretty determined to hijack our town halls and try to prevent us from having this conversation with our constituents, so I would encourage them to use other means.”
Democrats have once again pressed this issue, mocking the GOP for trying to put a lid on town halls.
“The Big, Ugly Law is a political disaster,” said Viet Shelton, a spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “The American people know it’s a giveaway to billionaires that’s paid for by ripping away health care from millions and jacking up folks’ energy costs. Everyone hates it and vulnerable House Republicans know it, which is why they’re scared to face their constituents in person during the August recess.”