GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Justin Amash, the Republican House member from Michigan, came face-to-face with voters for the first time since calling for the impeachment of President Trump and was met with an outpouring of gratitude at a town hall meeting.
Questioner after questioner prefaced their remarks with words of thanks.
“I don’t agree with many of your stands,” said one woman, “but I applaud your courage and morality.”
At least 700 people packed into the Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Arts and Worship to hear Amash spend two hours defending his decision to become the first Republican member of Congress to call for Trump’s ouster by impeachment.
He has been condemned by colleagues on Capitol Hill, castigated by Trump as a “loser,” and lost the support of the wealthy DeVos family, which wields huge political power in this part of Michigan.
But he was given a standing ovation as he entered the auditorium to face his public. After selfies and handshakes, he explained why he had spoken out and why he believed Trump’s actions were impeachable. “A lot of my colleagues agree with me on this stuff but just won’t say it,” he said.
He said it was true that a sitting president could not be indicted, but Congress has a responsibility to ensure Trump faces censure for trying to obstruct justice.
“We do our job as a Congress when we do not allow this conduct to go undeterred,” he said to thunderous applause. “We don’t just say that a person can violate the public trust and there are no consequences.”
Some of the audience remained stony-faced, and it was not until Amash, dressed as casually as his speaking manner in a slim navy T-shirt, called on a woman wearing a “Make America Great Again” – MAGA – hat that they were able to express their anger.
“I have been a supporter of yours since you were running for Congress and I can’t even say how disappointed I am,” she said.
“You talk about the Constitution and how important that is, but yet nothing that Mueller came out [with] says President Trump was unconstitutional. It was a smear attack.”
It was one of the few moments of hostility as some members of the audience heckled her with cries of “fascist” until Amash stepped in to silence the crowd. He responded by explaining he remained true to his commitment to voters.
“I haven’t changed. I am who I always said I was. I am a principled, constitutional conservative,” he said. “I heard your comments about the Mueller report, but you haven’t stated any facts.”
He talked at length about the need to restore respect to the public discourse and chided his colleagues in Congress for sticking rigidly to party lines.
And he declined to rule out running for president as a Libertarian candidate but joked that trying to impeach the incumbent was not the best way to launch a campaign.
Whatever happens, he faces an uphill struggle to hold on to Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District after breaking cover and declaring on May 18 that Trump had engaged in “impeachable conduct.” His is a lone voice in a congressional party that knows the president has the backing of its grassroots.
T.J. Apol, a Republican district delegate, said Amash’s stand and slick performance might have pleased a friendly audience but would not appease a restless base.
“The people I talk to are Trump people, and they sure aren’t going to vote for him,” he said after the town hall.
Deep in the heart of Western Michigan’s Bible Belt, Grand Rapids might be turning a shade more liberal as its population grows, but not enough to tolerate Amash’s anti-Trumpism, according to Jennifer Allard, a local Republican. This, after all, is a city that has hosted six Trump rallies since 2015, the year he began campaigning for president.
“Justin already faces two challengers, and I think he will lose a lot of the Republican vote,” she said. “But I will vote for him because he took a risk in standing up for what he believes in,” she said.
Amash has represented his district since 2011, becoming known for a strong libertarian streak and independent mind.
In recent days he has tweeted criticism of Trump’s use of his pardon power as well as arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
He set the stage for his town hall by returning to the Mueller investigation in a 25-tweet screed earlier in the day. In it, he criticized Attorney General William Barr’s handling of the report.
“Attorney General Barr has deliberately misrepresented key aspects of Mueller’s report and decisions in the investigation, which has helped further the president’s false narrative about the investigation,” he wrote on Twitter, accusing Barr of selectively quoting the text in a misleading manner.
