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Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa faced angry constituents during a rare GOP-led town hall on Tuesday.
Confronted by demands for Kilmar Abrego Garcia to be returned to the United States after being wrongfully deported to El Salvador, Grassley parroted President Donald Trump’s indefensible position.
“The president of that country is not subject to our Supreme Court,” Grassley told the Fort Madison crowd, eliciting jeers and groans from the audience.
“We would like to know what you, as the people of the Congress, who are supposed to rein in this dictator, what are you going to do about these people who have been sentenced to life imprisonment in a foreign country with no due process? Why won’t you do your jobs, Senator?” one attendee asked.
Grassley, whose deflections were repeatedly shut down by the angry crowd, found himself on the receiving end of a civics lesson—and a sharp reminder of his oath of office.
”You took an oath—‘I do solemnly swear or affirm’—do you remember that, sir?” one attendee asked. He then proceeded to recite the entire oath of office Grassley took as a senator.
“Sir, will you act upon your oath?” he asked.
Grassley continued to act powerless, pointing to the fact that the “only tool” for Congress to discipline the president is impeachment.
“And you missed that opportunity in his first administration. You had two opportunities for that. That was probably one of the only reasons we’re having this situation now,” the attendee responded.
Grassley tried to earn some praise from the raucous crowd, boasting about the Trade Review Act of 2025, a bipartisan bill that he co-sponsored with Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington. The bill would require congressional approval before Trump’s tariffs could take effect.
And always true to form, Grassley then tried to take the heat off of himself, calling out “mistakes that Democratic Congress has made in 1963.”
Yes, 1963.
“I’m so sick of that,” one audience member responded.
Grassley is now an outlier in his own party. While Democrats are out in the field engaging with constituents, virtually all Republicans continue to hide from voters.
If the GOP is hoping that voters’ outrage will blow over, they are sorely mistaken—they are only getting angrier.
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