A conversation with constituents: Congressman Hank Johnson's in-person town allows for a needed engagement opportunity

It's said public speaking is not just a challenge for young people, but adults. And when it comes to engagement, doing so face to face is vastly different compared to other means.

However, on May 28, 2025 on the campus of Gwinnett Technical College, a nearly filled Busbee Center (along with an overflow section in the lobby to view the live stream) sees the community attend the in-person town hall with Congressman Hank Johnson.

Scheduled from 6:30-8pm, the event opens with the congressman actually welcoming the audience and getting ready to make his opening remarks, but is paused in order to give the pledge of allegiance, an overview of the format, and the viewing of a preview video which points out a number of the actions of the executive branch of government.

Afterwards, Congressman Johnson provides his opening remarks on a number of actions which are deemed highly questionable via the executive branch, along with the apparent co-signature of members of Congress and entities including (but not limited to) the Department of Justice.

Coming up in groups of 10 at a time at the microphones setup in the aisles, attendees are allowed 1-minute to ask their questions and then receive a response from the congressman; likewise, for those who did not want to speak or ask their questions in this manner, via the scrolling display on the digital board, a QR code is provided for them to scan and submit their question.

The questions raised by the audience are a blend of providing a measure of research, passion, and overall concern of the state of affairs as these are among (but not limited to) the themes and questions raised by Congressman Johnson and attendees:

• The impact of the Republican Majority in both houses of Congress (House of Representatives and Senate), including the movement of the Reconciliation Act (or as a number have labeled it as the "Big Bad Bill") to the Senate (as it passes the House by a 215-214 vote with 1 present/who did not vote). With a possible cutting of $1.4 trillion over the next 10 years to programs including Head Start, SNAP, and Medicaid along with adding $3-4 trillion over the same timeframe to extend the current tax cuts (to where the top 5% in the country get 70% of the benefits), there are elevated concerns to the potential adverse outcomes of this bill from the financial to dilution of the checks and balances on the executive branch (click HERE for our coverage of the roundtable held prior to the bill hitting the floor).

• A call for people to continue to be as politically engaged with their representatives, senators, and other civic leaders on issues of concern.

• A feeling that waiting until the midterm elections in 2026 may be too late given current affairs.

• A sense of disillusion ranging from the check and balance system not clearly doing so when it comes to curtailing the actions of the executive branch.

• Concerns of disregard by the executive branch ranging from the Constitution to judicial review along with why impeachment is not taking place.

• A question as to if the current issues are within the party, general population, or a combination of both.

The exchange between the Congressman and those who speak is balanced between providing a measure of research, sharing opinions and possible ways to better address said areas of concern, along with passion and emotion. While scheduled to conclude at 8pm, Congressman Johnson fields questions until 8:15pm before concluding and meeting with the press/media, as he fields our question:

Continued conversation with constituents, be it in-person or virtual, is integral given the current state of affairs and levels of concern.

And central to said concerns and conversations is figuring out "where do we go from here".

Notes: All video and photos are recorded by @asnortonccs - you may watch our playlist for additional video, including the full pressor which takes place after the town hall (click HERE).