CNN
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GOP Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida faced frequent shouting from the crowd at a contentious town hall on Monday with a number of attendees asking critical questions about the Trump administration and the Department of Government Efficiency.
The congressman repeatedly asked the crowd to let him speak, saying, “do you want to yell, or do you want to hear?” At another point, he told one attendee that she was being disrespectful for disrupting.
During the event, Donalds was asked what oversight he is imposing on Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency as a member of the House Oversight Committee – to loud applause, cheering and whistling.
The reaction from the crowd was mixed throughout the event as Donalds received applause alongside boos at various points.
“We actually have to let the DOGE actually finish its work. What they are examining right now is inefficiency in the federal system,” the congressman said.
Donalds then began to say that President Barack Obama also wanted to look at inefficiency within the federal government during his time in office, attempting to draw a parallel between that and what Musk is doing – an assertion that prompted loud shouting from the crowd.
The event comes as relatively few Republicans have held in-person town halls compared to Democratic lawmakers during the current congressional recess period. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have faced frustrated constituents, with Republicans facing criticism over the Trump administration and Democrats facing criticism that the party is not doing enough to counter the administration.
Not long after the first question on DOGE, an attendee asked, “Do you approve of Elon and DOGE invading our Social Security files?” The question led to roaring applause from the crowd.
Donalds began to answer by saying, “Elon Musk and DOGE have been authorized by the president of the United States–-” and was quickly met with loud boos. The congressman attempted to be heard over the shouting. “Don’t boo. No, no, no, no, no. Don’t boo. Don’t boo,” he said.
As attendees continued to yell and shout, Donalds said, “you don’t want to hear the full story,” adding, ”because you’re not listening.”
The congressman said, “Now this is my question for the audience: Do you want to yell or do you want to hear?”
“Because if you want to hear, I’m trying to give you the information,” Donalds continued. “I told you, I’m going to be factual. But you can yell or you can hear.”
“If you think it is fine for people to defraud Social Security, you and I don’t agree,” the congressman said. “What the DOGE is doing is they are examining the records, they are providing their findings. Congress has to weigh in on those findings. That’s the way the process works.”
Facing a question about efforts by the Trump administration to cut staff at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the congressman said, “I want you to know that it’s not just the administration that wants to get rid of the CFPB. I want to get rid of the CFPB.” That sparked a mixed response from the crowd – while some applauded, others booed .
Stopping to address the audience at one point, Donalds said, “The beauty of a constitutional republic is we get to have these very vigorous debates and disagreements. Here’s what I will tell you, in all my time in elected office and before that, even though I disagree with you, I will respect your opinion. But I will still disagree with you.”
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza also sparked contentious exchanges during the town hall. At one point, a woman in the audience stood up and began shouting in protest of US support for Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
Donalds called the woman disrespectful for disrupting the event. “Like I said, if you want to have a disagreement, let’s have a disagreement. But when you’re going to stand and yell and disrespect everybody in this room because you think you’re being heard. Let us be clear: you’re not,” Donalds said.
“You’re being disrespectful. Ma’am, you are being disrespectful. And I will respect you and I will honor the fact that you are here trying to get answers, but if you are going to hold this thing up and be disrespectful then it’s time for you to be removed.”
A law enforcement officer walked to the edge of the row the woman was standing in, appearing to prompt her to leave. The woman eventually walked out of the row and up the aisle. Chants of “Free Palestine” could be heard as the woman walked away, and Donalds continued to the next question.
