Frelinghuysen Holds Controversial, 'Invitation-Only' Telephone Town Hall

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Chairman of the House Committee On Appropriations Rodney Frelinghuysen is denying a reporter's claim that he reportedly held a last-minute, invitation-only "telephone town hall" meeting where he said he would move to block funding for a Mexican border wall.

U.S. Rep. Frelinghuysen, a Republican from New Jersey, represents New Jersey's 11th District, which includes parts of Bloomfield, Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Livingston, Montclair, North Caldwell, Nutley, Roseland, Verona, West Caldwell and West Orange.

• See related article: Will The 11th District Stand Up For Obamacare?

"I was on the telephone town hall and can confirm that Mr. Frelinghuysen never said his committee would not fund the wall," Steve Wilson, a media liaison for Frelinghuysen, told Patch.

According to the managing editor of New Jersey Public Radio, Nancy Solomon, Frelinghuysen said "that any funding for a wall on the Mexican border would be stopped by his committee. He has no intention of funding that."

Frelinghuysen's office denied this report in a statement sent to Patch, saying:

What Chairman Frelinghuysen said was that the members of the Appropriations Committee will review the President’s request for funding, as they do all Administration proposals, when they are presented in a supplemental appropriations request or a budget amendment to Congress.

Solomon was the only reporter on the invitation-only Feb. 21 call, which did not appear to be publicized or promoted beforehand. MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow reported on Soloman's account during her Wednesday broadcast.

Frelinghuysen said in a statement he would continue to hold telephone town hall calls, and members of the public can participate by sending a contact number to his office.

Patch has not been able to access an audio recording of the call to independently confirm what was said.

President Trump signed an executive order authorizing a wall along the Mexican border in January, as Patch previously reported. That executive order did not specify how the wall would be paid for, but he later suggested a 20 percent import tax as one possible option.

Trump has said many times Mexico would pay for the wall, but Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto has refuted that claim.

The House Committee on Appropriations controls federal purse strings and drafts legislation to fund different aspects of the government.

Estimates for how much the wall might cost vary greatly. Trump has pegged the cost between $10 billion and $12 billion; Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said between $12 billion and $15 billion. According to a U.S. Department of Homeland Security report obtained by Reuters, it could cost as much as $21.6 billion.

Frelinghuysen has been for border control projects in the past, having voted yes in 2006 on the Secure Fence Act, authorizing federal funds to build a fence along the Mexican border. (You can read more about his immigration related votes here.)

The telephone town hall meeting came after Frelinghuysen skipped in-person town hall meetings held by a local advocacy ground, NJ 11th For Change.

Frelinghuysen sent Patch the following statement about NJ 11th for Change's town halls:

I am aware that certain groups have scheduled what they are calling ‘town hall meetings’ and I applaud the effort. I am happy that they are exercising their First Amendment rights to engage on the big issues of the day and endorse their right to free expression.

But my goal is not argument. My goal is to continue the same civil discourse I have had with my constituents over the years.

I will be continuing to visit all 54 communities in my district to meet with the people and listen to their concerns. And we’ll be having more telephone town hall meetings so I can engage with as many people as possible. I invite all constituents attending this week’s demonstrations to participate in our teletown hall meetings by passing along to our office a contact number.”

Tuesday's "teletown hall meeting" appeared to be invitation only. Solomon told Patch she was only able to access the call through a friend, saying, "He put his landline on speakerphone, and his cell on speaker phone and I listened in."

Frelinghuysen has represented New Jersey's 11th district since 1995, and began serving as the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations this January.

Image: Rep. Frelinghuysen's official portrait

Main reporting by Katie Kausch (Patch Staff)