One Republican legislator witnessed firsthand the bitterness that MAGA politics can sound in a crowded auditorium in a predominantly conservative Ohio county that strongly backed Donald Trump.
A noisy crowd of over 500 people showed up at Rep. Warren Davidson’s (R-OH) town hall on Wednesday evening at Butler County’s Edgewood Middle School, and many of them were there prepared to grill him about the president’s decisions.
After a time of prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, the Ohio event quickly broke down into an hour of slurs, delays, and sharp questions. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the tone of the night was set when Davidson used the phrase “illegal aliens” right away, leading to jeers and cries of “don’t lie” that resonated all over the room.
Yet it was more than just language that upset people.
Pretty raucous at the town hall Warren Davidson is holding. I think it’s safe to say many here didn’t vote for him pic.twitter.com/SxlRkSOiAp
— Scott Wartman (@ScottWartman) August 27, 2025
Ohio voters questioned Davidson’s explanation for deploying Ohio’s National Guard to Washington, D.C., and lambasted him for cutting Medicaid and the VA in Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Benjamin McCall of Liberty Township said, “The VA’s been hit,” pointing out the danger to almost 700,000 Ohioans who could lose their benefits, such as Medicare or Medicaid.
When Davidson was asked about Trump’s decision to let the federal government buy a 10% stake in Intel, it was perhaps the greatest bombshell of the evening. Davidson disagreed with Donald Trump and said, “Yeah, I’m disappointed in that decision (…) I don’t think the federal government should own equity in companies. I think it’s a bad idea.”
Inside, Ohio residents for many years vented their frustration at tariffs and economic pressures, while those protesting outside held signs condemning the government’s policies.
Regarding Middletown’s challenges, voter Constance Miller said, “The middle working class is now being pushed down into the poor.” And guess what? This neighborhood was famously written about in JD Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy!
🚨 VP JD Vance is absolutely CRUSHING it in Ohio right now. Every word of this is 💯 America First.
“We’re going REWARD American companies for investing in AMERICAN workers, not FOREIGN workers for a change.”
“Donald J. Trump took office and said, you know, if you want to build… pic.twitter.com/W544OVF34t
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 28, 2025
Even in places where backing Donald Trump once was a given, the fiery situation showed an increasingly wide gap between GOP leaders and the public. Butler County, Ohio, voted for Trump 63% to 36% over Kamala Harris in the previous election.
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Davidson’s supporters were still not in the mood for party loyalty.
Not all of those who were there agreed with the crowd’s tactics. Art Sauerwein of Hanover Township called the uproar “disgraceful,” adding, “I had no idea it would be this disruptive. It was out of control,” Raw Story reports.
The events of that night proved to Republicans why party leaders avoid public town halls: circumstances like this. There’s booing, passionate debates, and a congressman who has to admit Trump’s fiscal policy faux pas, which are precisely what Democrats are after.
It’s readily apparent that the GOP’s hold on its voter base in this Ohio territory isn’t quite as strong as it once was, no matter whether or not Davidson’s honesty brings him support or criticism.
