Bass faces questions on Ryan budget at town hall.
Monday, April 9, 2012 | 1:22 p.m.
"At a time of high unemployment and home foreclosure rates, frustration with Congress and rising anxiety over how to deal with" the nat'l debt "without gutting programs such as Medicare health insurance for the elderly and the Social Security retirement program," town hall meetings "aren't always comfortable for lawmakers. But they can offer a vivid picture" of voters' feelings.
"This year, the issue of the moment" is GOPers' "efforts to trim" the debt, starting with House Budget Cmte chair Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-WI) plan.
The DCCC "is eagerly watching" Rep. Charlie Bass (R). Bass "has hitched his star" to ex-MA Gov.Mitt Romney (R). "He told a gathering of businessmen recently that he would be in big trouble" without Romney "at the top of the ticket."
"Judging by the questions that Bass handled" at a recent town hall meeting, the Ryan budget proposal "will be central to the campaign. But other issues, such as rising gas prices, were on voters' minds, too."
Many "said that they were worried that Bass wanted to lower taxes on the wealthy. They worried about his association" not with Romney but with Ryan. Bass "voted for" Ryan's budget plan. "At one point during the... meeting, Bass seemed uncomfortable with Ryan's prominence." Bass, when asked about the Ryan budget: "I hate to call it that. It's the Republican budget in Congress."
"As gas prices rise, Bass will trumpet his work to increase energy efficiency." On April 4, "he put on a hard hat and peered into a... fire to talk about energy conservation with the owner of Concord Steam Corp. in the state capital" (Jacobs, Reuters, 4/8).
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