Special Poll
During a town hall meeting for Republican Representative Rich McCormick in Georgia, Donald Trump faced strong criticism from local residents, with one person even calling him a “megalomaniac.” Many attendees expressed frustration over McCormick’s support for the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and its massive federal workforce reductions and budget cuts.
The backlash follows the recent layoffs of nearly 1,300 probationary employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. The cuts are part of a broader effort across multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Education. Since January, 77,000 federal employees have chosen to participate in a government buyout program as part of Trump’s campaign promise to shrink the federal workforce.
During the meeting, a constituent accused McCormick of failing to stand up for the people in his district, saying he had done a “disservice” by supporting the layoffs. Another attendee condemned the job cuts at the CDC, questioning why the Republican Party was taking such a “radical and extremist” approach. McCormick defended the administration’s actions, arguing that “a lot of the work they do is duplicitous with AI.” He justified the reductions by warning that continued government expansion could lead to shortfalls in Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.
His response did little to calm the audience, as one person shot back, accusing the administration of using a “chainsaw approach” to layoffs and rushing the process recklessly. The crowd grew more agitated, with attendees shouting “No!” and one person yelling “Elon Musk is deciding.” Others voiced their frustration with chants of “We’re pissed” and “Shame.”
McCormick struggled to regain control, telling the audience, “Nobody can hear when you’re yelling,” as interruptions continued. At one point, a person in the crowd demanded to know how he planned to “rein in the megalomaniac in the White House.” They referenced a recent Truth Social post where Trump celebrated the termination of New York’s congestion pricing program, writing, “CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!”
McCormick tried to shift the conversation by saying, “When you talk about tyranny, when you talk about presidential power, I remember having the same discussion with Republicans when Biden was elected.” The comment was met with boos from the crowd. He added, “I don’t want to see any president be too powerful,” but the audience remained unconvinced.
The town hall took place in Roswell, Georgia, part of a congressional district where McCormick won nearly 65 percent of the vote in the last election. The congressman has recently drawn attention for controversial remarks, including suggesting that children in school lunch programs were “sponging off the government.”
The criticism of Trump’s governing style comes amid growing concerns that he is exceeding his constitutional authority in his first weeks of his second term. Since returning to the White House, he has signed over 60 executive orders, many of which have faced legal challenges. Among them is an order attempting to fire 2,700 USAID employees and recall most stationed abroad, a move that was temporarily blocked by a federal judge.