BURSTTown hall meetings are a cornerstone of American democracy, providing elected officials a unique opportunity to listen directly to their constituents and, just as importantly, for citizens to engage in a meaningful dialogue with their representatives. In recent weeks, we’ve witnessed some of these events devolve into shouting matches, where frustration often overshadows meaningful discussion. It doesn’t have to be this way.
While national headlines were focused on the contentious town halls in Georgia and elsewhere, something very different and, arguably, more hopeful, was unfolding in Florida.
Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) held a series of three town hall meetings with nearly 600 constituents in his district north of Tampa. Instead of grandstanding or confrontation, these meetings fostered substantive, solutions-oriented, bipartisan discussions.
What made these town halls different? Rather than the typical open-mic format where a member of Congress fields questions, Bilirakis invited constituents to take part in a hands-on budget exercise called "Principles and Priorities."
The idea is simple: rather than just talk about what's wrong, participants were asked to step into the role of lawmakers themselves with the goal of working together to shape the federal budget. They debated trade-offs, weighed competing priorities and worked together to craft a sustainable fiscal plan. Participants grappled with real, high-stakes decisions — tax policy, defense spending, health care, and Social Security solvency.
The constituents who joined the discussions came in with different perspectives; some were MSNBC viewers, others were Fox News fans. But they all put partisan politics aside and worked together to have reasoned, respectful and sometimes passionate discussions.
They considered dozens of different policy options, most of which were scored by the Congressional Budget Office, and worked in groups to pass them by majority vote. They didn’t always agree, but they listened to one another and made progress. Remarkably, most groups found ways to work together, despite their political beliefs, to reduce projected deficits by $1 trillion to $6 trillion over the next decade. In other words, they did what no modern Congress nor any modern president has ever done — they assembled their own fiscally responsible 10-year federal budget.
When many participants came in ready to defend a single issue, they left with a broader appreciation for the complexities of governing. They were encouraged that putting partisan issues aside and focusing on the real issues, like addressing the unsustainable deficit, could be accomplished through discussion and collaboration.
I’ve been facilitating these exercises for years, but something is changing, and I’ve felt it. People are more engaged, more willing to listen, and more eager to understand the bigger picture. I have watched people walk in with hardened partisan views and walk out shaking hands with someone they disagreed with an hour earlier. It’s not just informative; it’s transformative. And it has had a profound effect on me, too. It reminds me that even in a time of deep division, there’s still a deep desire to fix what’s broken — together.
The lesson? Something powerful can happen when people are given space not just to speak, but to think, listen and collaborate.
Budget exercises with constituents are a valuable tool that members on both sides of the aisle can use to engage constituents. The late Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) hosted one in downtown Atlanta. Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), a Blue Dog Democrat, has hosted several, and his south Georgia rural constituents have put the nation's finances back on course over and over again.
At a North Carolina town hall budget exercise, hosted by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) a few years ago, the local chairs of the Democratic and Republican committees were randomly assigned to the same table, where they sat side by side and hammered out their own bipartisan budget with their neighbors.
Town halls might serve a short-term emotional need when they turn into viral spectacles, but they rarely build bridges or lead to better outcomes. And although that might make headlines, it doesn’t move us forward. Instead, representatives can not only give people the mic, but also give them the tools to grapple with the policy questions and trade-offs elected officials face every day.
For members of Congress looking for ways to meaningfully engage their constituents, especially when trust in government is fragile, this model offers a powerful supplement to a traditional town hall meeting. Adding a budget exercise can help facilitate moving from protest to policy, from venting to voting, building understanding and solutions.
The public is ready for Congress to strengthen democracy and fix our budget problems.
Phil Smith is the national field director for The Concord Coalition and a former congressional staffer.