Rep.-elect Dean Phillips (D-MN-03) announced that he will be holding a town hall December 17 after a Sunday Minnesota Sun report found that he had yet to schedule a public meeting that he promised for “early December.”
“To that end, Phillips announced his first public town-hall meeting will be held in early December,” the Phillips campaign said in a press release after his victory in the midterms.
But as of Saturday, Phillips and his staff had yet to schedule any town hall events. On Monday, however, he announced on Facebook that he would be hosting a December 17 town hall in Bloomington.
“Everyone’s invited to share hopes, concerns, and ideas with Dean as he prepares to represent Minnesota’s Third District in the 116th Congress. Representation begins with listening, and it’s time to get to work,” an event description states.
The town hall will coincide with a Bloomington City Council meeting also scheduled for the evening of December 17.
Throughout the campaign, Phillips repeatedly criticized Republican opponent Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN-03) for not hosting enough town halls, and claimed in a popular ad that Paulsen was “so good at hiding that even Bigfoot is impressed.”
“He’s rarely caught on camera in Minnesota, and he’s almost never seen in public—and when he is it’s not for long,” the Phillips campaign said of Paulsen, touting the fact that Phillips had hosted “more than 120 public events since he entered the race.”
He also sent an open letter to Paulsen asking him to participate in a series of “voter forums” across the district, expressing the importance of providing voters with the “opportunity to see us in person.”
During his Monday town hall, Phillips could expect to hear from constituents about his refusal to publicly state his position on Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-12) as the Democratic Party’s nominee for Speaker of the House.
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of Battleground State News and The Minnesota Sun. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
