2018: Time for Congress to listen — or face the consequences

We rung in 2018 just a few short weeks ago, bidding farewell to one of the most politically divisive years we have ever seen. Across the country, Americans are frustrated at the seemingly unending name-calling coming from Congress and their disregard for transparency as they’re writing and voting on bills that impact us all.

And judging by these first few weeks, 2018 won’t be much different.

At Town Hall Project, we believe that government works better when members of Congress listen to their constituents early and often. When Congress votes on bills that have implications for everyone in the country — such as health care or tax cuts — without the public’s input, that’s bad for the country and bad for democracy.

{mosads}In 2017, far too many members of Congress failed to hold even a single public forum. In fact, of the members of Congress still seated at the end of the year 164 of them didn’t hold a single public town hall last year. That’s 23 Democrats and 141 Republicans who cast hundreds of votes last year but didn’t hear from the people who elected them once.

No matter what side of the aisle you’re on, that’s not how government is supposed to work.

Congress is facing dozens of critical votes in the coming year. Judging by President Trump’s own comments, Congress will be voting on a budget, the future of Dreamers, potential cuts to Social Security and Medicare, an infrastructure package, and many other proposals.

Each one of these bills will impact millions people. These bills will hit them in the pocketbooks, affect the roads they drive on every day, and even determine if they can legally live and work in the only country they’ve ever known. Another year of 30 percent of Congress not hearing from their constituents is simply unacceptable.

We’ve seen firsthand how easy it is for members of Congress to reach out to their constituents and give them opportunities to be heard about the issues that impact their life. Town Hall project even awarded two members of Congress — Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) — our Senate and House MVP awards for holding the more public events than anyone in their chamber in 2017. Wyden held 80, while Sensenbrenner held 115 — and both are off to strong starts already in 2018.

And people are hungry to be heard. Across the country, people lined up around the block to ask their questions, voice their opinions, and let Congress know that we’re watching them. With public interest in Congress seemingly at an all-time high, to not hold any public events is not an option.

So we’re asking each member of Congress to simply listen to the words of one of your colleagues, Sensenbrenner, when he said, “town hall meetings are crucial for a healthy democracy.”

2018 could be one of the most critical years in recent memory. Every member of Congress must honor their obligation to include their constituents in the lawmaking process.

In the two full weekends left before the Feb. 8 budget deadline, hold a town hall. Reach out. Ask your constituents what matters to them. To avoid making 2018 as dysfunctional as 2017, every member of Congress needs to start doing their job and hearing from the people that elected them.

Jimmy Dahman is the founder of Town Hall Project, a grassroots organization created to help Americans have face-to-face conversations with their elected representatives. Dahman has campaigned with a number of progressive efforts, including Hillary for America 2016 and Enroll America. Follow Town Hall Project on Twitter at @townhallproject.