US Rep. Glenn Grothman Faces Hostile Crowd at Oshkosh Public Meeting
Overflow crowd couldn't get in. Constituents grill him about funding cuts, Elon Musk.
Around 100 people attend U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman’s town hall meeting in Oshkosh on Feb. 21, 2025. Nick Rommel/WPR
People booed and jeered at U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman as he walked into the Algoma Town Hall just outside Oshkosh Friday morning.
The Republican congressman from Glenbeulah was there for a town hall meeting with around 100 constituents. After the building hit full capacity, around 50 more stood outside.
“This is moving very quickly compared to other administrations, and I think, across the board, he’s done some very good things,” Grothman said.
Boos and shouts erupted around the room. When Grothman praised orders ending birthright citizenship and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, the crowd only got louder.
Grothman updated constituents on three of his goals in the current legislative session. One, he said, was “welfare reform.”
“There are a lot of problems with regard to welfare. One of them, of course, it discourages people from working,” he said.
Several people shouted “no!”
Grothman added he’s working on a grant program that would teach people to use EpiPens. Finally, he proposed decreasing GI benefits and letting veterans use them on down payments for houses.
Grothman has represented the the 6th Congressional District since 2015. In November, he won his race with more than 60 percent of the vote.
Grothman answers constituents’ questions
One woman asked Grothman if he would oppose the House’s upcoming government funding bill if it includes cuts to Social Security and Medicaid.
“Certainly, if Social Security is cut,” he answered. “And Medicaid, we’ll have to see.”
Another woman asked the congressman how he feels about the power of Elon Musk, the billionaire heading Trump’s cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency.
“He does not have the ability to do any actions on his own,” Grothman answered.
“We did not elect him,” a man shouted.
As the town hall reached its scheduled end, more constituents shouted questions about Musk’s access to taxpayer data and yelled “don’t lie to us” at Grothman.
Overflow crowd couldn’t get into event
The small town hall was at capacity for Grothman’s visit. Several dozen people were turned away at the door.
Several dozen people weren’t let into the town hall meeting with U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman after the venue reached capacity on Feb. 21, 2025. Nick Rommel/WPR
One of them was John Kelnhofer of Oshkosh. It was his first time trying to attend one of Grothman’s town halls, he said.
“But it’s gotten to an extreme level now, where I fear for our democracy, I fear for the future of our country,” he said.
Kelnhofer said he got to the town hall 30 minutes before the meeting’s scheduled start. He suggested Grothman choose a larger venue next time.
US Rep. Glenn Grothman faces hostile crowd at Oshkosh town hall meeting was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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Good article and it does raise some interesting questions. I still dont understand how the same people claiming they support by definition racist dei policies also support blocking children of color from attending better private schools in their area with vouchers like wealthy white families are able to? How can you claim to advocate for people of color but then also work to deprive them of educational opportunity. This makes no sense. In addition it does seem that federal cuts could be done in a more organized and compassionate manner moving forward. How can people support much of the waste fraud and abuse that is being uncovered? One would think that this is where the anger should be focused on the billions of dollars essentially stolen from the American taxpayers.
There are two invaluable quotes for understanding the times that we are living through. The first is from a noted historian who said, “We should always beware that what now lies in the past once lay in the future.” And, a clever politician, who said, “Last year we stood at the edge of the precipice. This year, we have taken a step forward.”
America’s challenge, at this point, is not to prevent the demise of democracy in this country. In just the first month of the Trump administration, it is clear that we have taken that “step forward” over the edge, and are already on the path to being a kleptocratic plutocracy. And that it is very likely that – looking back – 2025 will appear as a turning point in getting there.
There is always a continuum in times like these. At one extreme are the out-and-out fascists, (Musk, a number of Senators and Representatives, and Cabinet members, the now free-to-roam militias), then the opportunists who are willing to go along with anything, then, those who go along, but want to remain respectable. Then those in “the middle” who don’t follow the news that closely, the “we didn’t know what was going on.” group. And then those who oppose the destruction of democracy and take some – or a lot of – risk in opposing what is happening.
Glenn Grothman isn’t intelligent enough to have an ideology, just some biases and prejudices. But it is clear that he, and the rest of the elected Wisconsin Republicans, along with Scott Walker and, sadly, Tommy Thompson will go along with anything the administration does. And, in the process, they can stay out of Trump’s crosshairs, or those of his violent supporters.
It is no accident that Wisconsin helped put Trump in the White House. Ryan Coltic’s comments are a useful mirror in understanding how Wisconsin voters played this role. This group is steeped in “whataboutism” and always ready to point out liberal hypocrisies, as Mr. Coltic seeks to do in his comment above. And, to distinguish themselves from those who obviously relish the cruelty that is now a hallmark of our national life, they call for more sensitivity in destroying lives or, in the case of cuts in foreign aid, deaths from disease.
Finally, there is the repetition of Administration/Fox News talking points, which are lies and exaggerations. Today’s example being Mr. Coltic’s assertion that Musk and his helpers are finding massive amounts of “waste, fraud and abuse.” It is not true, or, to be blunt, it is a lie. But it certainly will be true in the near future when a staggering amount of corruption and its impacts on our society become clear and undeniable.
Undeniable, except for the true believers and those who get their information from Fox News and talk radio. At that point, it will be hard to blame it on liberals, Biden, the mainstream press, migrants, racial minorities or transgender athletes.
But, by that point, the idea of fair elections may be history in a hyper-gerrymandered state, with voter suppression tools all in place and unlimited funding from the state’s plutocrats. In that case, Glenn Grothman may be assured of lifetime employment, along with the rest of the cast of Republican characters, who will have, without exception, gone along with the program.
If things somehow turn out differently, democracy is restored, and Republicans lose control, we should fervently hope that Democrats adopt the Trump value of “retribution” and seek it for all of the cruelty and damage that these people are doing to our country.
frank a:
Excellent post. I’m disappointed in only two things related to it.
1. You failed to mention women voters as a source of Republican blame for one of the sources of corruption that will flood through this country as a result of the Trump administration’s all-vengeance tour being lead by Leon and the DogeBags.
2. You beat me to the valid responses to Ryan Cotic’s post that claims all of the waste, fraud, and abuse being uncovered by the DogeBags, yet he fails to mention anything specific that is verifiable. The mere fact that Leon and Frump don’t like a particular government agency does not automatically prove that their funding is being wasted and/or abused.
The Ryans of the world have the right to believe what they want. However, their beliefs should be based on facts, and those facts should be verifiable by independent groups that understand the workings of these agencies far better that the guy with the golden chainsaw and his merry band of pimple-faced hackers.
When trump or his minions say that they have uncovered millions/trillions of dollars of fraud/waste – the question to always ask is: what and where exactly were the fraud/waste found? Demand documentation. We have to put their feet to the fire and demand specificity (as noted by TosaGramps).
Let’s start taking notes for the mid-term campaigns. We can’t live in a country where one party is allowed to 1) lie at will and 2) up-end lives for reasons that defy common sense.