Congressman under fire at town hall meeting in Willingboro
WILLINGBORO, N.J. (WPVI) -- Republican Congressman Tom MacArthur, who represents Burlington and Ocean counties, came under fire during a town hall meeting in Willingboro.
MacArthur basically walked into the lion's den Wednesday night.
A part of his district is largely Democratic, and largely against the Republican positions he supports, particularly on the repeal of Obamacare.
"I am watching an insurance industry that is collapsing, and here's why it's collapsing," said Congressman MacArthur.
But he never got a chance to finish his answer because of the angry crowd.
One man in the crowd said, "Because you put a hole in it."
MacArthur got an earful from a standing room only crowd at the JFK Center in Willingboro.
After voting to repeal Obamacare, he tried to reassure many here that they would not lose their healthcare because of pre-existing conditions.
"If you stay insured, by law no insurer can ever rate you different than anybody else, because of that condition. That's in the bill, that doesn't change in this bill," said Congressman MacArthur.
On that he had little success convincing people, and then someone wanted to know if rape would be considered a pre-existing not covered under the proposed Republican plan.
When asked "Is it true that rape can be considered a pre-existing condition, yes or no?" The congressman said, "You cannot be charged more because of that."
There were also a series of heated exchanges on whether he supports the appointment of a special prosecutor in the wake of the firing of FBI director James Comey.
"The answer is no not yet, not yet." said MacArthur.
Clearly, most at the meeting did not care much for President Donald Trump.
One man yelled, "How long are you and your fellow Republicans going to defend this American nightmare...open your eyes."
The congressman had a very difficult time trying to defend his point of view on hot button issues.
"Folks, if you want to talk to each other that's fine, I'll just talk to other people," said MacArthur.
"We want you to tell us the truth," yelled one man.
As the night progressed, things became quite heated, and police had to move in close to Congressman MacArthur for his protection.
The meeting lasted for several hours.
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