Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) are on a swing through Northern Kentucky, holding public forums throughout Massie’s district in a break from a coordinated lull in Republican town halls.
The two Kentucky lawmakers are hosting eight stops throughout the Bluegrass State’s fourth district to hear from constituents. They’ve made five congressional public forum stops and held three campaign events as Massie, who will likely face off against a Trump-backed primary opponent, prepares to run for reelection in 2026.
Both Paul and Massie have made headlines for their occasional willingness to deviate from the Republican mainstream and President Donald Trump’s agenda, notably in their votes against the GOP’s hallmark One Big Beautiful Bill this year.
The two are holding the public forums in the wake of guidance from National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson to refrain from holding town halls. That guidance hasn’t changed since the NRCC issued it in early March.
Especially in the early days of the second Trump administration, during the height of federal worker layoffs, protesters showed out in full force to heckle Republican lawmakers during town halls, prompting House Republicans to call off the public forums.
In the middle of the August recess, just about 16 of 219 House Republicans had held in-person town halls, according to a National Public Radio report. The NRCC circulated a memo telling congressional Republicans to “focus on Republicans’ efforts to improve voters’ everyday lives and show the contrast with out of touch Democrats,” in their August messaging.
Paul spoke on the protests other lawmakers have seen in their town halls after one of the events on the September tour, telling reporters that he and Massie haven’t seen any hecklers so far.
“It was great to hear questions. Some questions are hard questions, too, just trying to figure out what’s going to happen with Medicaid reform. I think the people sincerely wanted answers, and I liked the exchange because it was very polite, people wanting to know an answer and not people yelling at each other, like sometimes you see on TV,” Paul said.
A spokesperson for Paul told the Washington Examiner that the lawmakers saw a great demand for the in-person forums: “Dr. Paul has never stopped interacting with Kentuckians in person, on the ground, and in their communities and will continue to do so — of course while remaining vigilant with our security protocols, as we always have. The events of the last few days have had incredible turnout with standing room only at most of them.”
The two lawmakers told reporters they went on tour to hear from constituents about the issues Kentucky voters care about most.
“I think it was great. There was no rhetoric in here; there was nobody screaming. We really wanted to show that you can still go out and mix with people and still be safe. It’s still a world worth interacting with, and we have to in our jobs. We can’t stay in the office and do this remote-controlled,” Massie said.
Attendees varied from Kentuckians sporting red “Make America Great Again” hats to “I stand with Thomas Massie” shirts, flannels, and jeans.
Massie, who has drawn much public ire from Trump, faces reelection in 2026. Two other Republicans have filed to challenge the incumbent.
“I’m going to have a challenging reelection,” Massie told reporters on Thursday. He said he’s “relying on Kentucky voters” to sort through any out-of-state ads spreading false information.
Massie has challenged Trump on the “big, beautiful bill” and has been outspoken in calling for the full release of the Jeffrey Epstein Files. Trump has blasted the Kentucky representative several times, including in a June Truth Social post.
THOMAS MASSIE ‘EXTREMELY VULNERABLE’ TO GOP PRIMARY CHALLENGE, POLL SHOWS
“MAGA should drop this pathetic LOSER, Tom Massie, like the plague! The good news is that we will have a wonderful American Patriot running against him in the Republican Primary, and I’ll be out in Kentucky campaigning really hard,” Trump wrote.
The primary for Massie’s seat will be held in May 2026.
