GOP lawmaker accused of backing “fascist machine” at raucous town hall

Rep. Mike Flood, R‑Neb., was met with sharp questioning, boos and heckles Monday night as he defended President Donald Trump’s sweeping budget package during a town hall in Lincoln, Nebraska.

The event at the University of Nebraska drew an often-hostile crowd that pressed Flood on the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” the Republican spending and tax plan that slashes Medicaid and SNAP benefits, while delivering major tax cuts to high‑income Americans.

“I truly believe this bill will allow America to experience growth, that it will allow our communities to thrive, that it will spark our economy, that it will help farmers and ranchers, that it will take care of the vulnerable,” Flood told the crowd, speaking over repeated interruptions.

At one point, Flood asked, “Do you think that people who are 28 years old that can work and refuse to work should get free health care?” drawing cheers of “yes” from the audience. “I don’t think that the majority of Nebraskans agree with you,” he shot back.

GOP Rep. Mike Flood at a town hall: "Do you think that people who are 28-years-old, that can work, and refuse to work should get free healthcare?"

Crowd: "YESSSSSSSSSS!" pic.twitter.com/N0hGuHz6lm

— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) August 5, 2025

Flood faced questions from voters who demanded to know why their congressman backed both the president’s tax plan and his hard‑line immigration policies, accusing him of supporting a “fascist machine.”

One woman pressed Flood on the administration’s immigration enforcement costs, referencing the controversial Florida detention center, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” and other facilities. “How much does it cost for fascism?” she asked. “How much do the taxpayers have to pay for a fascist country?”

Veterans also criticized the bill for threatening benefits they rely on.

“How can you stand a bill that erodes the very services that people like me, my family, and younger vets coming home today rely on?” one Marine Corps veteran asked.

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The rocky reception was no surprise. Republican town halls have been going badly for much of 2025, with Flood’s only the latest to go viral.

In April, Sen. Joni Ernst (R‑Iowa) made headlines after an exasperated exchange over the Medicaid cuts in which she told a shocked audience, “We’re all going to die.”

Earlier, in March 2025, the NRCC had advised members to avoid public town halls altogether following intense blowback to the administration’s DOGE spending cuts. During the summer recess, by contrast, the campaign arm has told members to try to sell the president’s legislative package to their home constituencies, without specifically saying they should hold in-person town halls.

Democratic strategist Paul Begala told CNN the blowback Flood received could be a harbinger for Republicans nationally, comparing it to the voter backlash after the GOP’s 2017 tax cuts, and predicting an “earthquake” and a “wave” election in 2026.

“They lost 41 House seats in the next election,” Begala said, referring to when Democrats took back the House in 2018. “This combination of cutting taxes for the rich, exploding the debt, and cutting health care for working people — that’s not going to fly.”

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