Congressional candidate Andrew Janz hosts town hall meeting in Clovis

Andrew Janz, a Democratic candidate running against Devin Nunes for California’s 22nd Congressional District, held a town hall meeting Wednesday at Clovis Veterans Memorial District to address senior needs.

During the two-hour session, Janz gave a speech, received an endorsement from entertainer and Social Security Works PAC President Jon “Bowzer” Bauman, and conducted a Q&A session with the senior audience.

The meeting focused on the importance of senior benefits, or “earned benefits” as Janz refers to.

“We have many issues that are very important to the people that live here,” he said. “We talked about those issues – earned benefits, not entitlements. You will never hear me call them entitlements, and I want you to do the same. You earned these benefits and I will go to Washington, [D.C.] and make sure that they are protected. We need to make sure Social Security is protected [as well as] Medicare, Medicaid. We have these programs for a reason …”

Democratic congressional candidate Andrew Janz speaks to senior constituents during his town hall event at Clovis Veterans Memorial District, Wednesday, August 8, 2018. DANIEL LEON/CLOVIS ROUNDUP

The event was one of a series of town halls Janz is hosting with voters across the Central Valley to discuss issues related to the region and his plan to tackle them once elected to Congress.

“Meeting with constituents is the most important thing you can do as a member of Congress,” he said. “There’s no way you can do your job if you don’t know where your constituents are at on issues, what their problems are, what issues they’re facing. So, for me it’s important that we do these twice a year. I’ve made the pledge and commitment that I’m going to do two town halls a year if I’m elected to Congress. I think that all members of Congress should be held to this standard.”

Clovis PD investigates town hall threats

Prior to Wednesday’s town hall, a social media threat was made toward the Janz campaign and its supporters.

The threat was made on Twitter during a conversation between a Janz supporter (@realFireNunes) and a user under the handle @mtat22.

After a back-and-forth exchange, @mtat22 tweeted “How about I waste you and everybody in the Clovis town tall,” speaking about the town hall meeting scheduled that morning.

“This is an event that involves senior citizens, this is at our veterans hall. So, for anyone to make this threat, whether it’s a joke or if it’s serious, is something that should not be happening in our modern-day discourse,” Janz said.

Janz’ campaign discovered the threat and immediately reported it to Clovis Police Department. Detectives have interviewed the Janz supporter who is the victim in this case, and are investigating the circumstances surrounding the tweets in question.

No further details are available at this time.

Daniel Leon: A native of Woodlake, Daniel Leon is a recent graduate of Fresno State with a degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. Daniel served as Sports Editor at The Collegian, Fresno State’s student-run newspaper, prior to joining the Roundup. Got a story idea? Email him at editor@clovisroundup.com
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