GOP congressman booed for defending Trump's attack on families

During his Monday night town hall, Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX) found out the hard way that defending a humanitarian crisis doesn’t go over well with voters.

Voters regularly interrupted Burgess with boos and shouts like “Traitor!” and “Let the kids go!” They demanded that Burgess stop the Trump administration from tearing families apart as they try to enter the United States.

“We have kids with numbers on their shirts,” said Gretchen Veling of Keller, Texas, her voice shaking with emotion as she confronted Burgess about the trauma Trump is inflicting on children.

“We are scared. They are not U.S. citizens. But they are human beings and we’re scared for them.” Veling said. “What are you going to do for these babies, and what are you going to do for your citizens who are afraid for these babies?”

Burgess replied: “Where the hell is the leadership in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras?”

Then the audience erupted into boos and shouts.

“What are you doing?! What are you doing?!” crowd members cried.

Voters clearly weren’t pleased that Burgess tried to shift the blame to leaders of Central American countries instead of taking responsibility for the atrocities being committed by the Trump administration.

Later during the town hall meeting, local activist and preacher Jeff Weaver called on Burgess to be a better Christian by opposing the inhuman practice of taking young children away from their mothers and fathers.

“I’m asking you if you care about the gospel of Jesus Christ,” Weaver said. “It bothers me to no end to think that Mary, Joseph and Jesus would be ripped apart at our border.”

The show of local passion in a deeply red state such as Texas shows that Trump’s abusive attempt to wreck families is striking nerves all across the country.

And the universal condemnations from religious leaders and institutions continue to drive home the point of how heartless the Trump attack on families is.

Trump remains absolutely committed to making a radical-right play to his base. But it’s forcing many Republicans to sprint for the exits and seek political cover from a scandal that shows no signs of abating.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.