Sen. Jeff Merkley launches corruption town hall tour in Bend

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, launched his “Stop the Corruption” town hall tour in Bend, meeting with local residents to discuss concerns regarding federal government operations and policy.

The town hall lasted close to an hour and drew a largely full audience. Central Oregon residents spoke with the senator on a range of topics impacting the region, including the cost of living and concerns regarding the Trump administration.

During the event, Merkley conducted an interactive poll, asking residents to place stickers on items representing what they considered their primary concern regarding federal corruption.

Merkley explained that the tour was launched to gather direct input from community members. “The specific mission was to come over and hold a town hall related to the issue of growing corruption in our federal government,” Merkley said. “And and just hear from folks about what they're observing, what they're feeling, how they think we should tackle it.”

The event is part of a series of visits Merkley has made to Central Oregon in recent months. He stated that visiting communities in person is essential for advocating on behalf of the state.

“It's important because you need to be able to be as effective and advocate as you can,” Merkley said. “And to do that, you have to go and see what's going on. You have to check in with the local officials and see what's happening. You have to talk to the Red cross about the evacuations. You have to visit fire crews. Maybe you need to breathe in some of the smoke and know how real it is to have, you know, so many fires burning at once and so many large fires. And and so I think it makes me more effective in fighting for Oregon.”

Merkley is up for election later this year as he seeks another term representing Oregon in the U.S. Senate.