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Read the news of the day in less than 10 minutes — not that we’re counting.
Based on his interactions with leaders of the protest group Tuesdays With Toomey this morning, Sen. Pat Toomey could be getting closer to the Philadelphia town hall thousands of protesters have demanded.
Toomey did not agree to schedule a town hall, said Larissa Mogano, a Tuesdays With Toomey leader. But he did express interest in holding one, particularly as the meeting went on.
“By the end of the meeting he seemed to be willing to say we will have one,” she said.
Mogano noted, “we’re still counting that as defeat” and said Toomey still showed some reluctance. He met with Mogano and five other women representing the protest group at 10 this morning in his new Old City office.
“The conversation was constructive and focused on constituent interaction and the potential for future town hall meetings,” said E.R. Anderson, Toomey’s director of communications, via email. “Senator Toomey appreciated the feedback.”
The meeting lasted for about 30 minutes and consisted largely of the six women describing their backgrounds and some of their views on issues and mostly just asking for him to hold the town hall. Mogano said Toomey joked they were “pretty clear” about their messaging.
Before the meeting, the six women borrowed a calendar from a coffee shop across the street from the office. They used it as a prop to suggest Toomey hold a town hall during short break periods he has in mid-March and April.
“We figured it would be the most feasible for him,” Mogano said. “He tried to make the argument he’s done all these town halls and telephone town halls, which we said weren’t fair or representative.”
Toomey held several town halls during his first term as Senator, the last one in 2015, but he has never held a town hall in Philadelphia. He’s scheduled to appear at CBS3 this afternoon for a live, online Q&A session.
