Gov. Tim Walz stops in Des Moines on tour of town hall meetings in Republican-led districts in Midwest

DES MOINES — At a town hall meeting hosted by the Iowa Democratic Party, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz answered questions in a high school auditorium in Des Moines, criticizing Republican Rep. Zach Nunn for not holding a town hall himself.

The event was a kickoff to a tour of town halls in Republican-represented congressional districts across the Midwest, as Democrats cite the need for them after Congressional Republicans were instructed to halt their own.

Walz, who lost the race for vice president last fall alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris, spent an hour responding to comments from concerned attendees about federal layoffs, social security and public education, while criticizing Republicans at the state and federal level.

“There's a responsibility in this time of chaos, where elected officials need to hear what people are irritated about,” Walz said. “I would argue a democratic official should hear the primal scream that's coming from America to do something.”

The Friday event was the first of many in-person events that Democrats plan to hold across the country. Dubbed the “People’s Townhalls,” they will take place in all 50 states, including in congressional districts where Republican representatives won by slim margins.

Nunn, who represents Iowa’s 3rd District, beat his Democratic opponent by nearly four points last November.

Walz said he came to Des Moines to get Nunn to listen to his constituents, not personally attack the congressman.

Nunn rebutted claims that he hasn’t held any town halls and called the Democratic town halls “fundraisers disguised as forums.”

"One of the best parts of serving in Congress is hearing directly from Iowans,” Nunn said in a statement to the Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau. “That’s why I’ve held hundreds of listening sessions across all 21 counties in our district. Iowans voted for change in November, and I’m delivering: securing the border, unleashing U.S. energy and cutting taxes for working Americans.”

Iowa Republican Party Chair Jeff Kaufmann said Iowans believe in “common sense, not big-government sideshows.”

“Walz has embraced the worst of left-wing policies, from trying to eliminate the Electoral College to supporting unlimited abortion and reckless government overreach," Kaufmann said in a statement. "Under his failed leadership, Minnesota’s economy has tanked, crime has exploded, and personal freedoms have been trampled.”

Walz will host another town hall Saturday in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, which is represented by Republican Rep. Don Bacon, who won re-election by less than two points.

  Buy Photo

Iowans concerned about possible cuts to Medicaid, education funding

Town hall speakers in Des Moines included a high school senior asking how she would pay for college, a mother whose child is on Medicaid questioning if it will be cut, and a special-education teacher concerned about how potential federal funding cuts would impact her students with disabilities.

Patrick Kearns, a registered nurse at the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, expressed concerns about Department of Veterans Affairs layoffs during the town hall.

“Looking at a facility like Iowa City, that's 300 jobs out of the 2,050 employees that work there,” Kearns said. “We cannot survive that, and I think that is the goal of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and Elon Musk.”

Earlier this month, the Department of Veterans Affairs initiated a plan to lay off around 80,000 workers, according to the Associated Press.

Kearns also added that he wished Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who represents his district, would hold town halls to directly address constituents.

During a speed round of asking the audience what they would like to see their elected officials act on, answers included funding public education, supporting unions and calling on Democrats to be more “aggressive” in response to Republicans.

Lisa Cunningham from Des Moines, whose son-in-law serves in the U.S. military, came to the town hall because she is concerned about the impacts the federal layoffs will have on veterans.

“I feel strongly that our country is really going in the wrong direction, and I felt as though I wanted to be a part of a show of disdain for what's going on,” Cunningham told the Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau.