A top Republican is telling GOP lawmakers to avoid holding town halls because constituents are angry and the fiery meetings of late “are going to get even worse.” Congressman Richard Hudson, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, is instead urging party lawmakers to do tele-town halls or use Facebook Live to conduct remote meetings, according to press reports.

Mr. Hudson told a group of Republicans at a closed-door meeting Tuesday morning that “no one should be doing town halls,” comparing the current climate to the angry town halls GOP lawmakers faced in 2017 during their failed effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act. “To be clear, this comment applies to in-person town halls,” Mr. Hudson reportedly said.

A NRCC spokesman says Mr. Hudson is trying to mute protesters from special interest groups who are intent on disrupting town halls. “Chairman Hudson supports members reaching and helping as many of our constituents as possible, using technology makes this a heck of a lot easier. Chairman Hudson opposes attention-seeking Move On and Indivisible activists hijacking these events,” the spokesman, Wiley Kiley, told ABC News.

House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed the sentiments during a Capitol Hill news conference Tuesday, saying tele-town halls are “more productive than if you just go to an open forum right now.”

“These are their people who do this as a profession,” Mr. Johnson said. “They’re professional protesters. So why would we give them a forum to do that right now? The best thing that our members can do is communicate directly, frequently, consistently, with their constituents, and their other avenues to do it than just going in to try to give the other side sound bites.”

Liberal activists have openly played a role in encouraging people to attend the meetings in question, but the Republicans have offered no evidence that any of them were paid to attend.

After Tuesday’s GOP conference meeting, Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Boebert said she is worried about her safety, adding that virtual events are safer and more effective.

“I’ve done many tele-town halls, and I think those are very productive, and we can reach 1000s more people than we ever could in person. And so I think that that is a great strategy, but for me personally, it’s just not safe to do an in-person town hall, because I don’t know what to expect,” she said.

Numerous GOP lawmakers, even in heavily Republican districts and states, have in recent weeks faced constituents furious over the huge cuts that billionaire Elon Musk is making to the federal workforce. From Wisconsin to Georgia, constituents have grilled House Republicans over the cuts orchestrated by Mr. Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.  

The cost-cutting efforts, characterized by mass layoffs and deep spending reductions, have sparked outrage, with crowds accusing lawmakers of rubber-stamping what they described as an “extremist” and “reckless” agenda.

At a packed town hall last month in Roswell, Georgia, Republican Congressman Rich McCormick faced relentless jeers and tough questioning. One attendee demanded answers about cuts impacting critical agencies like the National Nuclear Security Administration, which safeguards American nukes, and professionals battling the bird flu outbreak, NBC News reported. Layoffs have also hit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a pillar of public health in Atlanta.  

Mr. McCormick defended the drastic measures, arguing that artificial intelligence could replace jobs labeled “duplicitous.” His response, “I happen to be a doctor. I know a few things, OK?” was met with boos from the audience.  

When he began warning about financial consequences for programs like Medicare and Social Security if the federal government’s size isn’t reduced, constituents shouted him down, insisting, “You’re supposed to stand up for us!”  

“We’re pissed!” one frustrated participant yelled as others cheered.

Mr. Musk, appointed to lead DOGE after spearheading corporate overhauls at Tesla and Twitter, has emerged as a lightning rod. The billionaire’s aggressive approach — dubbed a “scorched-earth strategy”— has alarmed both critics and supporters.  

Some residents at the town halls demanded Republican lawmakers hold Mr. Musk accountable. In West Bend, Wisconsin, GOP Congressman Scott Fitzgerald faced irate constituents, including attendee Michael Wittig, who was holding a sign reading, “Presidents are not kings.” Others questioned Mr. Musk’s authority.

“Are you going to subpoena him at some point? Are you willing to use your subpoena power to tell Musk to stand in front of Congress and answer some hard questions?” Mr. Wittig asked, according to a report from WTMJ, the NBC affiliate in Milwaukee. 

For his part, Mr. Fitzgerald applauded Mr. Musk’s efforts to trim the government and vowed that Congress will eventually have oversight authority.

“Certainly, the discussion in and around DOGE and the probationary moves that have already been done — they are going to have to be scrutinized at some point by the Ways and Means Committee where the expenditures will be made and by the other standing committees, but we just aren’t in that position right now,” Mr. Fitzgerald said.

Democrats are watching closely. The tension-laden events evoke memories of the 2009 Tea Party protests, which galvanized Republican victories in the 2010 midterms. One top Democratic voice insisted the chaos points to the end of the Trump honeymoon.

Renowned Democratic strategist James Carville said the Trump administration is in the “midst of a collapse” and predicted the downfall to come within weeks. “I believe that this administration, in less than 30 days, is in the midst of a massive collapse and particularly a collapse in public opinion,” he said during a recent interview with Mediaite founder Dan Abrams.