Constituents are angry after Rep. Barbara Comstock didn't appear at a pair of town halls. | Getty Comstock a no-show at weekend town halls

Rep. Barbara Comstock stood up constituents over the weekend who attended two townhalls with questions about an Obamacare repeal and the Trump Administration’s travel ban.

The centrist Virginia Republican invited people in her districts to “mobile office hours” on Saturday at two grocery stores in Lorton and Oakton, Va. The invitation specifically said she’d be there to answer questions about “issues important to you.”


But Comstock never showed up, angering dozens of constituents who wanted clarity on the GOP’s plan to replace Obamacare. Others wanted to question her about Trump’s immigration executive order. Dulles International Airport, after all, sits on the edge of Comstock’s district. And on Saturday, thousands from her Northern Virginia district swarmed the airport to protest the travel ban as green-card holders were detained for hours at a time.

“A friend just came back from a Comstock event in Oakton — Barbara was supposed to meet constituents there to talk about the repeal of Obamacare AND SHE NEVER SHOWED UP,” wrote Fairfax resident James McCeney on the public Facebook page of liberal activist group, Our Revolution Northern Virginia. “THIS IS SHAMEFUL… If you're in the 10th district, call her office and let her know that we won't be tolerating her not doing her job anymore.”

The blowback from constituents for her failure to show up at the events demonstrates the precarious position Comstock currently finds herself in: she’s a centrist Republican in a purple district, filled with just as many Democrats as Republicans. She's sure to be targeted by Democrats in 2018 — just as she was last election cycle when she won by six points.

Comstock’s office said the invitation suggesting Comstock would be in attendance at the town halls was “in error” and “should have just said staff.” Her deputy chief of staff Jeff Marschner said Comstock that day attended three other constituent events, including one that morning focusing on human trafficking in Loudoun, Va., and an afternoon celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year.

"Unfortunately, an email went out stating that she and staff would also be at two Fairfax County 'Stuff the Bus' food drive events," Marschner said in a statement for this story. "Staff attended both events and were happy to help those in need and assist constituents.”

According to social media comments, Comstock did send a staffer in her place. Some in attendance were furious the aide couldn’t answer their questions and simply jotted down their concerns and comments on a piece of paper. Yvonne Sayres, an Ashburn, Va. resident who waited for Comstock for two hours, told POLITICO in an email that "the staffer informed us [Comstock] was 'in the District' but refused to say where."

Virginia Democrats are already organizing against Comstock, plotting ways to pin her down with any Trump administration hiccups or missteps by her more conservative colleagues on Capitol Hill. A few days before the town halls, for example, Our Revolution organizers had encouraged their followers to attend her town hall to “tell her not to repeal Obamacare without a GOOD replacement that covers everyone,” as Laurie Tyler Dodd wrote on the group page Jan. 25.

“If you live in her district (or nearby), give her a piece of your mind!” Dodd wrote.

Members of the same group also blasted Comstock for failing to visit Dulles Airport over the weekend to help anyone caught up in the travel ban chaos. Two other area Democrats, Reps. Gerry Connolly and Jamie Raskin, did visit the airport.

“How about a candidate to oppose Comstock in '18?” wrote Tom Smith under a Facebook story about Democrats capitalizing politically off Trump’s immigration ban actions. “Is there a Bernie supporter we can encourage NOW...and begin positioning for the race?”