NC Policy Watch: Judging by today’s event, protesters are starting to get to Tillis
It’s no secret that Senator Thom Tillis has refused to host an in-person town hall since he was elected Senator, but Tuesday he took it a step even further. Tuesday he said he will not be accepting mail sent to his office nor will he be accepting visitors. Tillis is very clearly disrespecting his constituents by refusing to talk to them and receive letters from them. He is ignoring the people who put him in the position of power he’s in. It’s clear Tillis has very rotten priorities from his latest stunt.
It’s dumb mistake that almost all elected officials succumb to at one time or another, but with a relatively experienced politician like Thom Tillis, you think he’d already know better. Unfortunately, it looks like North Carolina’s junior senator will have to learn his lesson the hard way.
And that lesson?
Don’t disrespect your constituents.
Oh, there’s no doubt it’s got to be tempting — especially when the constituents in question are protesters who disagree with your actions on their behalf. But, make no mistake, today’s unfortunate action by Senator Tillis and his staff to refuse access to his Raleigh office — even to folks that merely wanted to deliver a letter on the Senate healthcare bill on behalf of the 100+ protesters outside — was a major blunder. (Note: A Facebook report from High Point indicates Tillis has called in the police to keep wild and crazy protesters away there as well.)
Instead of simply receiving — and maybe even, God forbid, patiently listening to — the heartfelt pleas of the assembled activists who braved the heat and humidity to turn out for the umpteenth straight Tuesday, Tillis’ people called out the security and the yellow police tape to keep constituents away. Click here to listen to a very nonthreatening protester named Michael Eisenberg explain in a Facebook video how he was denied the opportunity to deliver a letter to his senator.
