Reps. Maloy, Kennedy face hostile town hall crowd angry with Trump, DOGE

SALT LAKE CITY — Reps. Celeste Maloy and Mike Kennedy were greeted with animosity at a town hall in Salt Lake City Thursday as some 250 Utahns turned out to vent their anger at the Trump administration and ask the Utah Republicans to do more to push back against the president.

The anger in the room was palpable as people filed into the auditorium at the University of Utah's Carolyn and Kem Gardner Commons, and Kennedy — Utah's newest congressman — was met with an expletive as he exited his car to walk into the building.

The boos began in earnest as Maloy responded to the first question and continued, leading to constant sparring between the representatives and audience, interrupted often by shouts and insults from the raucous crowd and threats from Kennedy to have disruptors removed. The representatives expected the heckling and mostly smiled through it, pausing when the din drowned them out.

"I can't yell over you so I'll just wait," Maloy told the crowd when her first response was overwhelmed by boos. "I'm not going to impeach the president," she added, responding to the question asking for them to file articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump for actions many in the crowd said represent defiance of court orders.

But Maloy expressed sympathy for those who are angry with the direction of the country, telling them before they left that she knows the feeling well.

"Look, I knew not everyone was going to come here and agree with everything I said tonight," she said. "I do appreciate you coming and participating. I remember when I felt like I had no way of telling anyone in Congress how I felt about the things they were doing, and I was furious, and there was no outlet for that because I didn't know where to go to get questions answered. So, I hope even if you hated everything I said, even if you hate me and you hope I get hit by a bus tonight, I hope you at least appreciate that there is a place you can come and express your fears."

Before he left, Kennedy smiled as he took a selfie from the stage with the crowd behind him — all while being booed and facing chants of "shame, shame, shame."

Thursday's outpouring of frustration is just the latest instance of GOP lawmakers facing hecklers at town halls in their home states, as voters seek to vent anger about Trump and his attempts to slash the federal government with the help of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency. Just a day earlier, Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyoming — a conservative lawmaker who ousted former Rep. Liz Cheney after Cheney served on the panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol insurrection — was met with similar rage during a town hall in Laramie, Wyoming.

Several attendees held "Musk or us" signs in Salt Lake City Thursday, and the crowd interrupted discussions about federal spending by chanting "Eat the rich." Musk, the world's richest man and major donor to Trump's 2024 campaign, was a frequent target of ire, and several people called on the representatives to tax wealthy Americans more instead of pushing for dramatic spending cuts.

"We don't need more (Internal Revenue Service) agents, we need more people who are willing to honestly pay their taxes," Kennedy said when asked about reports that the IRS plans to cut up to half of its workforce.

Despite the heckling, Kennedy and Maloy continued to take questions for nearly an hour, responding to concerns about infringements on free speech after the planned deportation of Palestinian student protester Mahmoud Khalil, potential cuts to staffers of Utah's five national parks and plans to renew the 2017 tax cuts enacted by Trump.

Many in the crowd saw the night as an expression of righteous anger, but others worried the display could hurt efforts for change. Joy Lynn and Craig Jeppson traveled from Heber City to attend and tell Kennedy — who represents them in the 3rd Congressional District — their concerns with DOGE and what they see as attempts to weaken the nation's democracy.

Joy Lynn, who described herself as a "moderate Republican," compared the night to last year's chaotic and lengthy GOP state nominating convention, which saw Gov. Spencer Cox get booed by delegates and which Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson called out for its "vulgarity and viciousness."

"One of the things I was afraid of coming in here was that it would be a boo fest, and that's frustrating for me," she told KSL.com after most of the crowd had cleared out. "The moment I start yelling at you, you stop listening to me."

"I felt embarrassed, actually, for the constituents of these congress people," Craig added. "I really thought it was sad, actually, that we have to lower ourselves to insults. ... It lowers us to Trump's level. He's a bully, right? He doesn't allow people to have conversations and so I want to rise higher than that."

Though both were critical of Kennedy's stance on Trump and wanted to hear more concrete answers to some of the concerns raised throughout the night, they appreciated that both lawmakers took the time to hear people out.

"I feel like they tried to do their best," Craig said. "I don't think I was completely satisfied with the answers."

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