Spartz Congressman faces annoyed voters at Indiana City Hall

Westfield, Indiana — Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.) ignored the advice of Mike Johnson (R-La.) chairman, and in the face of a two-hour enduring heckling, answered national questions and bravely confronted the City Hall meeting with a lively ingredient group.

Spartz welcomed around 500 attendees to the event on March 28th. “I hope we can have a conversation,” she said, greeting her. “I do City Hall because it gives me the ability to communicate directly with all people.”

Spartz admits tension in the room when introducing the staff, saying, “They are very nervous because there’s a lot of drama going on, so if they get upset, they just scream at me, not to them.”

Within minutes, many attendees took Spartz in her words.

The lawmaker is a trained accountant running a family farm with her husband, starting with preparing for the country’s revenue shortage of about $2 trillion and the preparations for $36 trillion in national debt. In response to the cry of taxation, Spartz said, “Even if you receive all the money from the wealthy people, you can’t pay your debts.”

Related Stories

The room erupted into the Heckling and continued along the way throughout the event.

Participants, who were meandering through the venue’s parking lot, spoke about their frustration before the event began.

“Our leadership has lost its way,” Shelley Fabrizio, 68, of the Fishers, told the Epoch Times.

“I want the answer. I think a lot of us are very upset about what’s going on in Washington right now. It seems like we’re doing damage to everything that’s not sticking to us all,” said David Wellington, 38, of Noblesville.

Sheridan’s Pam Williams, 53, told the Epoch Times. “People are being taken from the streets. They are being snatched at the entrance to the border. They are disappearing into private prisons without legitimate procedures,” Williams said, referring to the arrest and deportation of illegal immigrants.

About 500 people were denied entry to the event due to space restrictions, of which around 20 remained outside displaying signs and chanting.

Inside, Spartz asked questions ranging from the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s executive order to power clearly made by unelected Musk and his team.

Laura Merrifield Wilson, a professor of political science at the University of Indianapolis, served as a nonpartisan moderator, selecting questions and introducing the questioner.

Most questions were raised thoughtfully, but participants frequently boo-ined Spartz’s answers and shouted comments.

Spartz was not hindered. “You don’t agree with me,” she said at one point. “Now, let me answer your question.”

The lawmaker’s response focused on the inability of Congress to function due to overpartisan declarations, which she said was proven by failing to pass the budget bill. Spartz argued that this was the root of many of the issues participants asked.

A man named Dylan from Westfield questioned the constitutionality of the administration’s cuts in spending in comments that sparked applause from the crowd.

“The president and the administrative department have stole your exclusive constitutional authority over the budget,” he said. “When are you going to respond to your oath, defend the Constitution and regain the strength that voters in this district reserve for you?”

Spartz disagreed with all of Trump’s actions, but said the deeper problem was Congress couldn’t control his spending choices.

“The Congress doesn’t see 85% of what’s going on,” Spartz told the audience. “That’s the broken system we have to fix.”

Lawmakers clashed with GOP leaders over past spending and said they would not vote for an increase in federal debt restrictions.

Spartz often repeated the need for financial restraint.

She said she favors NATO and prefers to deter Russia’s attacks, but prefers to use financial incentives and punishments. Ukraine’s ongoing military aid (her indigenous people) stated, “There is no blank check. We need a strategy and we need to know where the money is being spent.”

When cutting funding for National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Service, “I don’t think the government should spend… spending money to subsidize the media,” Spartz said. “There are many ways to fund the media right now.”

With regard to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, Spartz reflected the administration’s position that these programs are preserved for seniors, low-income and Americans with disabilities, but they need to be improved by reducing fraud, waste and abuse.

These answers were unpopular. Several others walked around the hall with protest signs.

A small number of participants praised Spartz’s views on the need for border security and the changing status quo in international affairs after World War II. Those who stood up to provide questions thanked Spartz for their willingness to join the forum. Several questioners cheated fellow attendees to interrupt the speaker.

Spartz has represented Indiana’s 5th Congressional District since 2021.

Trump carried Grant County, the more rural of the district in 2020 with 70% of the vote. But in 2024, purple Hamilton County, the home of Sparts and City Hall, preferred Trump in 52% of the vote.

Spartz saw his victory margin drop by 4.5 percentage points in the 2024 election.

“People are really engaged,” Wilson told the Epoch Times after the event. “There was obviously a lot of disagreements, but I think that’s the standard for the course at City Hall for now.”

Wilson felt the members had heard and added that it was important for lawmakers to explain her position.

Near the end of the event, Spartz admitted that her security team had advised her not to hold the event, but said, “We still felt we needed a conversation.”

In his final remarks, Spartz said, “I know you’re very, very frustrated.”

“() Some issues, you don’t want to hear what I have to say, but hopefully you can find something you like,” she said. “And we try to continue this dialogue. ”

Spartz will appear at Muncie’s 2nd City Hall on March 29th.