Houlahan sets town hall meeting

Freshman U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-6th, fo Easttown will hold a town hall meeting here on Saturday.

In the wake of President Trump’s State of the Union address, in which he called for greater unity in American government, freshman U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-6th, fo Easttown will hold a town hall meeting here on Saturday.

“I appreciate the President’s call for unity and hope that he is willing to work with Congress,” said Houlahan, in a press release issued after Trump spoke on Tuesday.

“I hope that we can come together in bipartisan manner to increase access to affordable and quality healthcare, bring good paying jobs with good benefits to our community, improve infrastructure and our education system, pass common sense gun safety measures, and reform our broken immigration system,” she said.

Houlahan took aim at Trump’s continued insistence on a border wall, however, and also on the possibility that he might not sign legislation later this month that would keep government offices open.

“I am a third generation military veteran,” she said. “I believe we must protect all of our borders - land, air, and sea - and we must protect our values. I support smart, effective and efficient border security measures. I do not believe a monolithic continuous border wall is either efficient or effective.

“I also believe that we cannot let our government be shutdown again as a negotiating tactic over any policy difference, regardless of the administration,” she continued. “To that end, I was concerned that the President did not appear to rule out another government shutdown.

Houlahan’s guest to the State of the Union was Michelle Roberson, the Westown mother whose daughter, Bianca Roberson, was fatally shot in a road rage incident in 2017 just a few weeks after she graduated from high school. Michelle Roberson’s appearance was meant to draw attention to the issue of gun violence in the country.

The town hall, which is open to the public, will be held from 11 a.m. to noon at the New Life in Christ Fellowship Church at 1 S. Fifth Ave. in Coatesville.

Doors will open at 10:30 a.m.

To contact staff writer Michael P. Rellahan call 610-696-1544.