“Where are @RepMarkMeadows, @Jim_Jordan, and @Raul_Labrador? #RepealANDReplace #Obamacare,” President Donald Trump tweeted at 5:21 p.m. on March 30.
Less than a day later, Congressman Mark Meadows answered. He was at West Henderson High school for an informational session with journalism and social studies students.
“My heart is really here with a lot of you guys. You hear it all the time. You are the future. But really you are the present as well. You help shape the debate of what is going on,” Meadows said.
Meadows has represented North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District since 2012. He also chairs the Freedom Caucus, a group of about approximately 40 conservative Republicans who serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Meadows started his presentation with a review of how a bill becomes a law. He called up volunteers, including senior Claudia Martin, to act out possible scenarios.
“It was really good to be up and actually know what was going on because of my civics class,” Martin said. “It was also a little intimidating to be up there standing next to someone who has made such a big difference in Washington, D.C.”
Meadows answered a variety of questions from student on topics ranging from school vouchers to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The question session began with a question about the recently passed House bill related to internet privacy.
“I really liked how he addressed both sides of the spectrum when answering his questions,” senior Sofia Molina said. “He didn’t directly answer many of them, but he was very knowledgeable about the subjects that the students wanted to discuss.”
Recently Trump’s American Health Care Act was pulled from consideration after Speaker of the House Paul Ryan determined he did not have enough votes to pass the bill. Meadows and the Freedom Caucus were among the representatives refusing to support the AHCA.
This refusal prompted several questions from the students.
“I have to look at what is best for the country, and specifically what is good for the 750,000 people I represent,” Meadows said. “The plan we (the GOP) are putting forth is not better than the existing plan we have in place right now for my district.”
Meadows also mentioned that he plans to utilize other forms of communication, such as social media, to help bridge the gap with younger voters. The Congressman suggested his audience tweet back to President Donald Trump since the President has called out Meadows and the Freedom Caucus numerous times over the past two weeks.
“We will be a lot more tweet available or Instagram available,” Meadows said. “Maybe we can even tweet back at Donald Trump. That will make national headlines. I guarantee it.”
By: Charlotte Grush and Josh Conner
