Well over 80 people turned up for the town hall sponsored by the Tama County Economic Development Commission and held at Norma Anders Public Library in downtown Dysart. Due to the unexpectedly large turnout – and with the library’s Learning Center maxed out at 50 occupants – organizers quickly made the decision to split the event into two, back-to-back sessions. It was a solution that did not go over well with many in the first group who, after only some 16 minutes with the senior Senator from Iowa, were asked to leave in order to accommodate the second group waiting in the main library.

Grassley started both sessions in much the same manner by stating that he had been advised against holding such events.

“Some of my colleagues said you shouldn’t have town meetings because everybody’s mad,” he told the second group. “They don’t have to tell me people are mad.”

He then shared an anecdote about mail volume during President Donald Trump’s first term compared to today.

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), right, answers a constituent’s question on Wednesday afternoon during a town hall at the Norma Anders Public Library in Dysart. Also pictured is Tama County Economic Development Executive Director Katherine Ollendieck (back), whose organization sponsored the event.

“In 2017, about this time of the year, we were about 35,000 letters behind,” he explained to the first group. “Today, it’s about 34,000 that we have received. In fact, in two months, we have received as much or more mail than we received in the first six months of all last year.”

Before delving into questions, Grassley briefly touched on his work as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a recently-passed, bipartisan fentanyl bill.

“We passed a fentanyl bill that should go to the President within the next couple of weeks after the House passes it again. It passed 86 to 12, so I hope that will help some of you that think everything in Washington is partisan,” he said.

He also addressed the ongoing quest to reauthorize a new Farm Bill.

“We should have had a five-year Farm Bill starting in 2023, but it didn’t get done. So we basically have a seven-year Farm Bill,” Grassley said during the first session. “We [now] have what we call a Democratic framework and a Republican framework [for the legislation] from the last Congress that is a good starting point.”

Q&A No. 1

Questions Grassley took during the first session were fairly evenly split between those in support of DOGE’s actions to shrink the federal government and those concerned about cuts to public services.

“I heard that Trump and/or Musk proposed cutting research at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. and another health agency. Do you agree with that?” a man seated near the front of the room asked, kicking off the Q&A.

“Well, they’re doing so much that there’s no way I could say I agree with this or that because you’re bringing up something I haven’t heard about,” Grassley responded. “Remember that every president, when they get to office, will put a hold on a lot of things.”

Grassley also remarked, “Because you mentioned Musk, I want to make it very clear that Musk has no power,” – a comment that instantly drew loud, booming laughter from many in the audience.

“Musk has no power and I say that from a Constitutional point of view,” Grassley said above the din.

“Then what’s he doing in our White House?” a member of the audience interjected.

“The Constitution in Article II says the executive power of the federal government is vested in the President,” Grassley continued after asking for calm. “And to back that up, I always quote a sign that [President Harry] Truman had on his desk: ‘The buck stops here.’ So nothing can be done without the President either acceding to [it] or because the buck stops with him. Now, I think they’ve learned some lessons from their first months in office. It may not appear to you – and I’m not totally satisfied that I can be conclusive on this – but they’ve learned that since [the President’s] got this power, that they ought to quit announcing things out of the Department of Government Efficiency and only the Cabinet people announce the changes.”

The next question addressed reigning in federal judges, to which Grassley replied, “There’s only one thing you can do with judges that have a lifetime appointment and that’s impeachment. And you don’t want to impeach judges. In 250 years, we’ve impeached 14 judges, and only eight of them have been convicted.”

A couple questions later, Dirk Dahms of Traer, seated in the front row, told Grassley that as a business owner of over 30 years who has “made a hell of a lot of mistakes,” he understands that Musk and DOGE “are going to make mistakes” but that he remains thankful for their work.

“There [are] hundreds of thousands of things that need to be cut. If we were $36 trillion (in the black in) our checking account? That would be great. But our checking account is at least $36 trillion in debt,” Dahms said, in part. “So tell them thank you for doing the cuts and, again, I will take them at their word – for now. If they screw up, I’ll be the first one to call them out.”

A local farmer then spoke, expressing concern about recent cuts to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and how they have directly affected him with planting season on the horizon.

“I signed up for a cover crop cost-share for the first time,” the man explained. “So I followed all the rules, planted my cover crop … Then I get [notice] that I needed to cease all activities, probably not actually get paid for what was originally agreed to as a cost-share for cover crops. … It’s OK if we need to get rid of some of these things next year, but I think we need to live up to our obligations [this year].”

Grassley told the farmer that between USDA funds being “frozen” and then later “unfrozen,” he was probably going to need to hold tight for “90 days to see what the result is.” He then asked the farmer if he had signed a contract for the cost-share, to which the man replied he had, but with a third-party working through the USDA. The Senator asked if he had reached out to the contract holder.

“Yes, they said the President froze [the funds] and recommended not spending anymore money on anything right now,” he replied.

One of the final questions during the first session was from Dysart resident Laura Wilson, who expressed concern about possible cuts to the Social Security Administration (SSA).

“With only 19 cities in Iowa that have a Social Security office and many of the people that use Social Security … [lacking] access to internet … [SSA] currently [has] a month-long wait time already for appointments. Do you feel this will be affecting the citizens of Iowa?”

“If they go through with it, yes,” Grassley responded, before later telling Wilson anyone experiencing issues with Social Security should contact one of his six regional offices.

But then he pivoted, telling the audience that DOGE’s interest in SSA seemed to stem from the possibility of fraud in the system – a statement met by groans and general outrage from some in the room.

“I think it’s got something to do with the feeling there’s an awful lot of fraud in Social Security. I saw this figure at the bottom of my TV, that there’s 12 million people on Social Security rolls that are at least 120 years old. … I think it’s a fact that they don’t check death certificates with people on the rolls,” Grassley said.

The final audience comment before the session changeover was from a woman concerned about cuts to the federal workforce and how such cuts might disproportionately affect veterans.

“Thank you for having a town hall. You are a very brave man,” the woman began, leading several in the audience to chuckle. “A lot of people that are walking away from jobs with the federal government are veterans, and I really object to calling federal employees ‘scum.’ That language is being perpetuated. To call people names. No, don’t do that. We can be civil. I see that as a real problem.”

“You won’t find me using language like that,” Grassley replied, to which an audience member called out, “Well, then stop it then, for everyone else.”

Shortly thereafter, the first session ended.

Q&A No. 2

During the second session – which lasted roughly twice as long as the first – many of the same issues were raised regarding Musk and DOGE, but the tone of the room took a sharper, less polite turn.

The first question turned out to be more of a statement than a query by a woman seated in the middle of the room.

“I am very passionate about our democracy and our Constitution – I was raised that way,” she said, standing and clutching a piece of paper from which she read. “I just wanted to remind you that everybody needs to be heard. … I’m an independent [voter] and I am very passionate about standing up for those that are vulnerable and those that are the underdog. … [I’m concerned about] Donald Trump singledhandedly changing processes to dismantle our government with DOGE [and] Elon Musk in a position of power that he has no [right] to receive. Cuts need to be made at the federal level – they always have been. … But they need to be done appropriately, they need to be analytical, and they need to benefit the American people and that includes everybody.”

She went on, “Our democracy is under threat. … DOGE should not have any authority. [Trump] gave them that authority. He gave [Musk] rights to our information. And they’re controlling what’s going on across the nation, without any accountability. And your role as a long-term senator is to speak up and remember those of us with little power, authority, or knowledge to do anything about it. We’re counting on you.”

A loud round of applause swiftly followed her statement from a good portion of the audience, which included not only Tama County residents, but also those who had traveled from nearby Benton, Black Hawk, Iowa, and Poweshiek counties.

“I can speak out about [an issue], but if you don’t read it in the local newspaper or see it on the local television or [on social media] …. The only way you’re going to know if I spoke up on something is if you read it or hear it. And we have freedom of the press, so I can be talking to 10 journalists every day, but if you don’t read it, you don’t think I talk about anything. And this is why I put everything that I do [online],” Grassley said in response.

A Dysart resident then asked about the 2017 Trump Tax Cuts.

“What is happening with the tax reform, and when can we expect to see that come through?”

“[B]asically, you’re going to see the 2017 tax bill repassed,” Grassley replied.

A few questions later, Pastor Emma Peterson with the Cedar Valley Unitarian Universalists in Cedar Falls spoke, introducing herself as a former resident of Dysart who had spent eight years there.

“Veterans are not a monolith,” the pastor began. “They make up 30% of the federal workforce. I have many congregants that are veterans, and I have many congregants that are federal workers and they are tremendously concerned about their jobs and their healthcare. I’ve heard a lot of talk about ‘sacrifice’ from Musk who is an unelected official and an oligarch. … Veterans and federal workers have already sacrificed for this country. … What are you doing to protect them?”

“Every year, I vote for more money for VA,” Grassley said, in part. Peterson then pushed for more of an explanation regarding Musk and cuts to the VA.

“[Musk] can’t cut anything at the VA. Only the secretary of the VA can do it and he can only do it with the [President’s permission],” Grassley said before again bringing up Article II of the Constitution.

“Musk can’t do anything without the President OKing it,” he added.

“I think the President has OK’d it,” Peterson responded, with a clear emphasis on ‘has.’

As the town hall neared the hour mark, the conversation turned to tariffs, which were also a focus of Grassley’s visit at MARSHALLTOWN Company earlier in the day.

“On again, off again, who pays for it, who does it hurt?” a man asked.

Grassley responded that while he couldn’t “draw any conclusions” yet, tariffs would be paid for by “one of three people.”

“The country sending them here could absorb them, they could be passed on to the consumer, or [tariffs] could be eaten up by the merchant,” he said.

“How much is it going to hurt our farmers?” the man asked.

“You’ll find most of the places where they want to retaliate is against agricultural products,” Grassley said as part of his answer.

“I am a proud public school educator,” a special education teacher from Waterloo said in introducing herself with one of the final questions. She had concerns, she told Grassley, about cuts to the U.S. Department of Education.

“Since your students get help through the AEA [Area Education Agency], I’m the ‘Father of the AEA [legislation]’ passed in 1974 – the last year I was in the state legislature,” Grassley said before expounding on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) “that still stands” and funding for talented and gifted education.

“Don’t worry about what the President thinks about your program – Congress appropriates money every year for the IDEA program. Every year. And Congress is still going to continue to appropriate it regardless of who is president,” Grassley told her.

“And you’re going to continue to support that?” she asked.

“Yes,” he replied.

Another positor then asked Grassley if he would vote against closing the U.S. Department of Education – if such a vote were to come before Congress.

“No, I’m going to vote to eliminate [the department] because I’m the only member of Congress [still serving] today that voted against establishing it in the first place,” Grassley, 91, said firmly. “I think that education policy needs to be decided at the state and local level.”

Following the town hall, Grassley held a brief media scrum in a nearby study room before taking off for his farm in Butler County. Earlier in the day, he had been in Grundy County at Ritchie Industries, at MARSHALLTOWN Company, and at Belle Plaine High School in Benton County. Prior to his stop at Norma Anders Public Library, he made a brief, impromptu appearance at nearby Union Middle School (UMS) in order to visit with not only students but his granddaughter, UMS math teacher Dana Grassley-Stone.

As he waited for reporters, he was seated in the corner of the room at a table. He appeared tired, perhaps even weary, and while the day’s multi-county schedule could easily have been to blame for any fatigue – perceived or otherwise – there is no denying the mood of the country these days is disquieting.

“Tama County is an angry place right now, and it just grew organically,” Katherine Ollendieck, executive director of the Tama County Economic Development Commission, told reporters following Grassley’s departure. “It was definitely not what we were anticipating as a town hall meeting.”