Washington County residents pack town halls with Wyden, Bonamici

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden held a town hall for Washington County residents on Feb. 15, followed by a Washington County town hall held by U.S. Representative Suzanne Bonamici on Feb. 17, who represents Oregon's First Congressional District.

Wyden's town hall, held in the gym at Poynter Middle School in Hillsboro, was overflowing. The crowd spilled into the hallway, and soon, a line stretching out the door was given the bad news: the gym was at capacity, and there were concerns about violating fire codes.

Some went home; others went in anyway.

At Bonamici's town hall, held at Century High School in Hillsboro, the crowd packed most of the stands. While not as large as the senator's shindig, Bonamici marveled at the size of the crowd.

"I just heard that this is my largest town hall meeting ever in my 13 years [as a representative]," Bonamici said.

Both Democrats, the senator and the congresswoman fielded questions from their respective audiences on a wide variety of topics, but each town hall largely focused on their opposition to President Donald Trump's fast-paced ream of executive orders and the slash-and-burn approach to federal jobs and federal funding by the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an office spearheaded by tech billionaire Elon Musk, now a government employee.

Wyden described the recent actions of the Trump administration and DOGE as having "all the elements of a coup" during the town hall after an audience member pushed back against Wyden's use of the term "political quackery."

Wyden also said he would not participate in shutting down the government over an upcoming budget process. "Shutting down the government is not the way to go," he said to some jeers from the crowd. He cited what he described as well-documented evidence that voters do not look favorably upon lawmakers who force a shutdown.

News in the Grove caught up with two Forest Grove residents, a wife-and-husband duo, after the town hall ended.

Stefan Dietz said this was his first town hall since he became a U.S. citizen in late June 2024 after the German Bundestag adopted a law allowing German citizens to hold dual citizenship. "I wanted to be part of the democratic process," he said.

Dietz said he wasn't sure if Wyden achieved much at the event.

"My problem is this senator, he is probably wanting to do the right thing, very slowly through the political process, while Musk and his cronies are creating facts as we speak," Dietz said.

A self-described political junkie, Jayne Cravens said this was one among many town halls she's participated in (both she and Dietz would appear at Bonamici's town hall two days later).

"I like to hear from elected officials firsthand, and I like to hear what people are saying," she said.

"People are desperate to hear something specific," Cravens said. "I think they're really frustrated. I too hear the senator saying, y'know, we gotta trust the process, I just don't think he heard that the process is letting us down and I think we might need to start thinking outside the box," Cravens said.

"I don't think anybody's calling for violence but I think people were desperate to hear "what can I do to disrupt this," and I don't think they got that," she said.

Following Bonamici's town hall, News in the Grove spoke to two Forest Grove residents, including former Mayor Pete Truax.

Speaking about the large crowd Bonamici had drawn, Truax said he believed it reflected the political divide in the U.S.

"They're not only dissatisfied with the president and the people working for him, but they're also dissatisfied with the Republican majority and the Democratic minority," he said.

"There are no winners in this situation," he added.

Hear from Truax in the video below.

"I'm hopeful in the power of the Constitution, I'm disappointed in the power of the people," Truax said.

Truax said that, while he believed Bonamici's power as a legislator in the minority party was currently limited, he wanted to see how well she would articulate the loyal opposition.

"For the most part, I think she gets a passing grade. There were a couple of points where she needs to not say "I hear ya" so many times," he said.

"The proof is now what are you gonna do now that you hear it," Truax added.

Beth Genly, also from Forest Grove, brought a sign opposing Trump and Musk.

"Outrage, frustration, desperation and a belief in the American system" was what brought Genly to the town hall, she said.

"I was already really proud of Congresswoman Bonamici and I still am, I just need her to get a lot louder," Genly said.

Genly singled out her support of Providence nurses currently on strike (a tentative deal was announced just before this story was published), several of whom were at the town hall and asked for Bonamici's support, and noted what she described as the intensity of feeling in the room.

Genly said she is talking to local friends to figure out what can be done on a local level as a community, in addition to her activism at the state level, where she has been active in efforts to convince the state of Oregon to divest from fossil fuels with a group called Divest Oregon.

Bonamici talks with News in the Grove

In the moments after the town hall ended, News in the Grove Editor Chas Hundley managed to ask a few additional questions of Bonamici.

Bonamici said she spoke with local mayors, county officials, Metro councilors, and school board members prior to the town hall.

"I wanted to hear what they were hearing. And it really did mirror what we heard in this room today, that people are very, very concerned and they want to know what to do," Bonamici said.

Bonamici said that local elected officials also requested that the Congresswoman increase communication on federal issues to local officials.

"This town hall meeting reinforced my perspective that what the Trump Administration and particularly the unelected billionaire Elon Musk, what they are doing is really hurting our country," she said.

"In addition to many things being not only hurtful, but also illegal and unconstitutional and people are really worried. We are very worried about what is happening and what it means for our future," Bonamici said.

As a final word to News in the Grove readers, Bonamici urged those interested in keeping up-to-date with her work to sign up for her email newsletter and follow her on social media.