Virginia GOP lawmaker invites public to ask her about Obamacare repeal – then never shows up to event

A Virginia Republican lawmaker is avoiding her constituents rather than answering their questions on repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act.

Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-VA) invited the public to ask questions over the weekend at two "mobile office houses" events at grocery stores in Lorton and Oakton -- but the lawmaker never showed, reported Politico.

Comstock, who was re-elected to a second term in November, promised on the invitation to answer questions about "issues important to you," but she instead sent staffers.

Social media users complained that a staffer at one of those events was unable to answer their questions and instead just wrote down their comments, and refused to say exactly where Comstock was.

Comstock’s office said the invitations were “in error” to suggest the lawmaker would actually be at the “mobile office houses,” because she was instead scheduled for other events.

Her deputy chief of staff said Comstock was instead at a conference on human trafficking, a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year and a "Stuff the Bus" food drive in her district.

Her constituents took out their frustration on social media.

"At this point, my trust in Congresswoman Barbara Comstock is so low that I didn't even think for a second that she would be there - no matter what email said," said Facebook user Vlad Ovchynnikov. "I was lucky though to catch her Director for Community Outreach. Others had to talk to interns - hardly worth a drive from, say, Winchester."

Another Virginia Republican, Rep. Dave Brat, recently complained to a conservative group meeting that "women are in my grill" demanding answers on Obamacare, but he promised to meet with constituents after President Donald Trump had spent at least 100 days in office.

Other GOP lawmakers, such as Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), have angered voters by refusing to answer their questions about the possible repeal of the 2010 health care reform law.