U.S. Rep. Adam Smith hosts town hall in Seattle

U.S. Rep. Adam Smith urged hundreds of people who attended his town hall Saturday to reach out to supporters of President Donald Trump.

But while doing so, Smith, a Democrat representing Washington’s 9th Congressional District, which covers parts of King and Pierce counties, made it clear where he stands on Trump.

"I cannot with president," Smith said to cheers from the crowd. "For the first time in my career, my job is more about stopping a particular person and a particular branch of government from doing awful things."

Some showed up at King’s Hall in Mount Baker wearing pink hats as sign of resistance to the Trump administration.

Constituents waited in line to raise their concerns about the direction of the country.

“I weep for my country. I weep,” one woman said.

They raised issues ranging from veterans' affairs to foreign policy.

“What would you recommend as a long-term policy strategy for a more stable and peaceful Middle East?” one man said.

A couple of people were also concerned about the newly announced proposed budget cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency.

“Even at 15 years old, I can’t vote and hold no political power,” a young teen environmental activist explained. “Me and my entire generation are going to be paying the real price  all of this even though we have no say and didn’t ask for it.”

This comes on the heels of backlash against Republicans refusing to hold town halls across the country.

In February, Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Wash., did a live public television interview on Facebook instead of an in-person town hall.

That decision drew a large protest outside his 8th Congressional District office in Issaquah.

Also in February, constituents of Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers in Spokane staged a town hall against the Trump administration even though the 5th District Republican congresswoman wasn't there.

There were some disruptions at Smith’s town hall, with the congressman threatening to remove the person if it goes on any further.

Most were supportive of Smith.

"I would ask the public do you want Representative Smith to take extraordinary measures?" a woman asked. "If you do stand up, stand up, right now tell him."

Smith also left his constituents with something to think about.

“If we're going to get an alternative to what we find so detestable,  we need to build a coalition that offers a better idea,” Smith said. “It is not enough to say Republicans are awful. We have to reach out to people who voted for Trump. The presumption that everybody who voted for Trump lost their mid is not correct. There are a lot of people who had good reasons for it. We have to understand what those reasons are.”

Cox Media Group