September 10, 2017

Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) got an earful from some of the crowd during a town hall over the weekend at Robinson Theatre at Colorado Mesa University. While the audience was supportive of the senator's proposal to protect the Dreamers from deportation now that Donald Trump has rescinded DACA, they were not so thrilled with his ideas on health care or on cutting the corporate tax rates:

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner on Friday said he believes Congress can find a way to protect "Dreamers" — people brought into the United States illegally as children — from deportation.

Gardner, a Colorado Republican, is one of 10 senators formally backing the latest version of the Dream Act. He and Colorado Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet became co-sponsors of the bill Tuesday, the same day President Donald Trump rescinded President Barack Obama's executive order that created Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. About 17,000 immigrants in Colorado are covered by DACA.

At a town hall at Colorado Mesa University, several of the people who took the mic to ask questions started by thanking Gardner for supporting the proposal.

"We need a bipartisan solution on how to address children brought to this country by no fault of their own," Gardner said. "We can do this."
[...]

When asked about health care and repealing the Affordable Care Act, Gardner was direct.

"I think we need to repeal Obamacare," he said. The crowd yelled out boos and calls of "don't repeal it, fix it."

Gardner said that the Colorado Division of Insurance is looking at an average cost increase of 27 percent next year for the 12 percent or so of state residents who buy their insurance on the ACA-related exchange.

"What we have right now isn't working," Gardner said. "What we had before ACA wasn't working. We need a bipartisan solution that will decrease cost, increase quality of care."

Gardner asked the audience if they support single-payer insurance. He estimated about 95 percent of the crowd raised their hands. But, he said, in November 2016, single payer was on the ballot under Amendment 69 and was soundly defeated by Coloradans.

"I do not support socialized, single payer," Gardner said. "I don't think the government should be or is capable or can afford to run a health-care system. I don't think that would be in the best interest of Americans."

Here's more from The Daily Sentinel:

And they applauded when he said he supported the investigation by Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller into allegations of collusion between the Russians and President Donald Trump.

Audience members held up pink and green strips of paper signifying whether they agreed or disagreed with Gardner, frequently turning the hall pink with waving signs of disagreement.

Audience members cheered when one woman said the middle class was disappearing, the environment suffering and opportunity was lagging.

“So what are conservatives conserving?” she asked to applause. [...]

Cutting the corporate income tax also got a cold reception, with audience members shouting out, “Loopholes, loopholes!” when Gardner said the 35 percent rate should be reduced.

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