U.S. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen has been dodging NJ 11th for Change's requests for in-person town hall meetings for nearly three months
WASHINGTON D.C. -- After weeks of protests by groups from residents concerned about the proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act and President Donald Trump's policies, U.S. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen has finally agreed to a meeting.
But members of NJ 11th for Change and BlueWaveNJ have to travel several hours south to the nation's capital to meet Wednesday with Frelinghuysen (R-11th Dist.) at his Washington D.C. office. And they'll be limited to groups no greater than 10.
Frelinhuysen has been dodging requests for an in-person town hall for months. Instead he's held invite-only town halls over the phone.
By comparison, U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance (R-7th Dist.) has weathered two contentious in-person town hall meetings so far this year, and plans to hold a third next week.
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Frelinghuysen gained some ground with the groups when he and a slew of other Republicans including Lance broke with Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan in opposing the Republican-backed American Health Care Act (AHCA).
Frelinghuysen, who has repeatedly advocated for the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, did say at the time he remained "hopeful" that AHCA will be modified further.
NJ 11th for Change and BlueWaveNJ will be promoting their meeting with Frelinghuysen on Twitter using the hashtag #NJ11InDC.
And we're off! Two buses from Montclair heading to D.C this morning. Follow along at #NJ11inDc pic.twitter.com/iyPwgttMBd
-- NJ11forchange (@nj11forchange) April 5, 2017
Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.