MAHOPAC, N.Y. — Rep. Mike Lawler faced another tough crowd at a town hall late Sunday night, as frustrated constituents in his suburban swing district demanded he answer for the war in Iran.
One man asked the GOP congressman why he voted against a measure that would have checked President Donald Trump’s power to commit the country to the Iran conflict without congressional approval.
“The fact is the president is well within his authority to conduct the strikes that have been conducted,” Lawler responded over boos, comparing the conflict to strikes on Libya during the Obama administration in 2011. “If, at the end of these 90 days, the conflict is not done, then yes, Congress should take steps to authorize continuing force,” he said, adding that it would be “idiotic” for lawmakers to order a withdrawal as the administration pursues peace talks with Iran.
The next question came from Marion Walsh, who identified herself as both a military mother and daughter.
“Respectfully, you have abdicated your responsibility to the majority of the constituents in District 17,” she said. “You have in fact endangered our young people, our service members of our country and killed civilians by not standing up to Trump on this unjustified war.”
Lawler said the goal of the war is to “dismantle the unholy alliance” between China, Russia and other U.S. adversaries. He added that he has delivered for the district and pulled out sheets of paper that he said included “all the things I’ve actually done to push back on the administration on issues that I disagree with,” from fighting to extend temporary protected status for Haitians to pushing for an expanded property tax deduction known as SALT.
“Blah, blah, blah,” responded one of the more than 150 people assembled in the high school auditorium, which appeared almost evenly split between those frustrated with Lawler and those who supported him.
Lawler represents one of the most competitive congressional districts in the country. New York’s 17th Congressional District spans Rockland and Putnam counties as well as parts of Westchester and Dutchess counties. Voters here supported both Kamala Harris for president and Lawler for Congress — one of only three districts in the country to politically split their presidential and House tickets in 2024.
“The fact is, if you want to get things done, you actually have to engage with the White House and the administration,” he said. “And none of the people who are seeking to replace me will have any ability to do that whatsoever.”
Lawler is also one of a small group of lawmakers, and only two Republicans, who have held in-person town halls over the two-week recess from Washington that ends Monday. House Republican leaders advised members to hold virtual town halls instead after a series of explosive confrontations with protesters early last year.
Republicans in Congress have been largely supportive of the war in Iran, which the Trump administration has argued was necessary to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon, among other goals. Democrats have overwhelmingly opposed the conflict, which is estimated to cost more than $1 billion per day, and have argued that Congress should have a say in it.
The administration has provided shifting estimates of how long the war will continue. In the meantime, closures to the Strait of Hormuz have boosted global oil prices, shaken financial markets and added economic uncertainty for consumers.
The war creates a challenge for Republicans in swing districts like Lawler, who were already facing ultra-competitive races in a year when the political headwinds were against them. Democrats see an opening as the MAGA base navigates internal conflicts over another foreign war.
One attendee, 15-year-old Landon J. Staples, told Lawler he was concerned that proposals for an automatic draft could mean a large-scale ground invasion in Iran. Lawler responded that he would not support enacting the draft.
“I’m concerned about a potential conflict, and whether we’d actually be defending the ideals of democracy or whether we’d just be defending the ideals of our president, who isn’t necessarily going along with all the people of the United States,” Staples told The Washington Post.
Another man was escorted out of the event after demanding that Lawler seek to impeach the president, citing Trump’s social media post threatening to wipe out “a whole civilization,” and continuing to shout after staff took the microphone away. “He makes genocidal threats against millions of innocent Iranian civilians,” the man said. “Don’t be spineless, impeach him!”
It wasn’t all criticism: One man asked how Lawler could “get more involved in the negotiations on that conflict overseas” because he’s “a common-sense guy and I think you’d make a difference.” Two women who stood to speak said the hecklers in attendance were a “disgrace” or acted worse than high school students.
Lawler also fielded questions about energy prices, health care research funding and a nursing shortage. He touted the tax cuts in the Republican tax and spending bill passed last year, and he discussed efforts to expand housing availability.
It’s not the first time Lawler has faced an unruly crowd.
In February, he was shouted down at a town hall by people livid over the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis by federal law enforcement officers. Last year, he was heckled over the GOP tax and spending bill, tariffs and other Trump administration policies.
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