JACK BERGMAN

ESCANABA — A group planning a town hall meeting Thursday in Escanaba to criticize U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman and his communication with constituents is not telling an accurate story, according to Bergman’s aide.

James Hogge, communications director for Bergman, said the congressman does keep in contact with Michigan’s 1st Congressional district. He called the planned town hall meeting in Escanaba “a political stunt.”

“Since first being elected in 2016, Congressman Bergman and our entire team have worked every single day to listen to constituents and to communicate the congressman’s point of view and reasoning. Our office sends thousands of email replies, returns phone calls as quickly as possible, and sends out regular press releases Facebook and X posts, and e-newsletters,” Hogge said.

The town hall will begin at 7 p.m. Eastern time Thursday at the United Steelworkers Local 21 Union Hall, 1201 Sherman Road in Escanaba. An individual can sign up to have a maximum of three minutes to ask questions or make statements to an empty chair representing Bergman.

Hogge said Bergman, R-Watersmeet, is no stranger to the people in the 1st Congressional District, despite what the Escanaba town hall implies.

“The congressman has held town halls, community engagement events, and has had literally thousands upon thousands of in-person meetings with constituents from every walk of life and every political ideology,” Hogge said. “In fact, when this same group of activists (Indivisible) were campaigning against him in 2017/2018, Rep. Bergman would personally attend meetings at their houses and answer questions and discuss the issues that each of them found important.

“To be perfectly clear, this so-called ‘town hall’ is nothing more than a far-left Democrat meeting. It’s not a town hall, it’s a political stunt. The people putting it together never formally invited the Congressman and they scheduled it for a day that he is in session — voting in D.C. This group can rest assured that after this sort of dishonesty and obscene political gamesmanship, our team will be disregarding their demands for the foreseeable future.”

Hogge said it is also important to note that Bergman is voting exactly how he said he would during the campaign. “He has stood by his conservative principles since day one and quite frankly, that’s why he won his latest re-election by over 100,000 votes,” Hogge said.

“Our caseworkers across the district have been hard at work and have recovered over $37 million for constituents struggling with the bureaucracy at federal agencies like the VA, Social Security and the IRS.”

Hogge encourages constituents to reach out to Bergman’s office and sign up for e-newsletters and press releases. If they would like a meeting with the congressman, they can make a request online at Bergman.House.Gov.

Brian Rowell can be reached at 906-786-2021 or browell@dailypress.net.