Iowa Rep. Ashley Hinson to hold town halls in Elkader, Decorah

Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, of Marion, will hold back-to-back in-person town halls Wednesday in Elkader and Decorah.

Hinson announced the town halls in her weekly email newsletter sent out by her office Friday.

“Ensuring I’m transparent and accessible to Iowans has always been a priority for me,” Hinson wrote in the newsletter. “I look forward to hosting two more in-person town halls next week and hearing from Iowans about the issues that matter most to them.”

The meetings are scheduled for 11 a.m. at the Elkader Opera House, 207 N Main St. in Elkader, and 2 p.m. at the Center for Faith and Life on the campus of Luther College, 555 College Dr. in Decorah.

Those attending the Decorah town hall may park in the library parking lot at 585 Library St.

Hinson has said she intends to continue hosting in-person public town halls across Northeast Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District this Congress.

She hosted her first in-person town hall this year last month in Mason City, where she was booed, heckled and shouted at as she defended President Donald Trump's agenda.

  Buy Photo

She hosted a telephone town hall last week with Iowa Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, where she defended Trump’s and Tesla and SpaceX Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk’s efforts to expose and eliminate “waste, fraud and abuse” in the federal government through Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

Hinson, who represents northeast Iowa, is a member of the House DOGE Caucus.

She joined the rest of Iowa’s all-Republican delegation last week in voting for a massive tax and spending bill as part of President Donald Trump's budget priorities.

The bill includes roughly $4.5 trillion in tax breaks passed during Trump’s first term in 2017 that are set to expire this year, while temporarily adding new ones he campaigned on during his 2024 campaign, including no taxes on tips, overtime pay, car loan interest and others.

To make up for some of the lost tax revenue, the bill would cut an estimated $625 billion to Medicaid — the joint federal and state program that helps cover medical costs for low-income individuals, including the elderly and those with disabilities — and $300 billion to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, over the next 10 years.

The cuts would largely be done by imposing work requirements on many of those receiving benefits. Able-bodied adults age 19-64 without dependents would need to work, volunteer or go to school for 80 hours a month in order to maintain them.

The bill also would roll back green energy tax breaks from the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act and add $350 billion in new spending on border security, mass deportations and defense.

Hinson, speaking to reporters Friday, said she was “proud” to vote for the reconciliation package.

“Simply put, the bill is promises made, promises kept in action,” she said. “Iowans overwhelmingly voted for President Trump’s America First agenda — ending illegal immigration and preventing dangerous criminals and drugs from entering our communities, cutting wasteful spending and unleashing American energy.”

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com