Rep. Louie Gohmert cited the 2011 shooting of then-Rep. Gabby Giffords at a public event as a reason not to hold public town hall events.
"The House Sergeant at Arms advised us after former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords was shot at a public appearance, that civilian attendees at congressional public events stand the most chance of being harmed or killed — just as happened there," the Texas Republican said in a statement on his website.
The congressman blamed violent leftists and said they made public events a safety issue.
"At this time there are groups from the more violent strains of the leftist ideology, some even being paid, who are preying on public town halls to wreak havoc and threaten public safety," Gohmert said in his statement.
He pointed out in the statement that at one public event, "one Congressional friend had one of his district staff members knocked unconscious and hospitalized this past week after being overrun by a group intent on physical confrontation and disruption."
Gohmert said that he can reach more constituents with a telephone town hall meeting, which would also be able to include the disabled or elderly who cannot attend live meetings.
"In the same amount of time it takes to have a town hall meeting, which usually has between 30 and 100 attendees in east Texas, I can communicate with thousands of my constituent bosses through a telephone town hall meeting," he said.
Giffords, a former Democratic Arizona congresswoman, was shot in 2011 at a public meeting with her constituents. She suffered a gunshot wound to the head, and six others were killed in the shooting, including a federal judge and a child, according to CNN.
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