It’s springtime and if you’re like me you find yourself saying those three little words…..

What the F$%k.

WTF is going on?

Last Tuesday, Congressman Don Bacon held a tele-town hall, and over 17,000 people logged in to get answers about what was going on.

The tele-town hall was civil. The calls and questions were screened, and Congressman Bacon gave answers that showed he’s not too happy with all that is happening yet supportive enough of President Trump to not upset the far-right MAGA crowd.

And while the congressman seemed celebratory that he had the biggest town hall of his career, I couldn’t help but think that the crowd would have been much smaller if people weren’t so concerned with losing their Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans benefits, and more. The crowd would have been much smaller if it happened on a day that didn’t have the head of the Department of Defense putting out Top Secret messages on a less-than-secure device.

Yes, the crowd would have been much smaller if so many people weren’t asking WTF.

The people who called in their questions or submitted them via the Internet were unable to ask follow-up questions, but after the town hall was finished, Congressman Bacon held a half-hour press conference where I, along with some others, were able to ask him questions about things he said at the event.

I questioned him about his claim that Social Security wasn’t under attack. I mentioned how the Commerce Secretary talked about people missing payments, about Musk calling it a Ponzi scheme, about cutting the staff, making it more difficult for people to sign up or get help when they need it. Congressman Bacon admitted that even he was having a tough time getting through to say that his mother-in-law had passed away. He said he was going through the everyday channels and not using any special congressional privilege to contact them.

But he assured us that no current benefits would be touched, therefore Social Security was not under attack.

Congressman Bacon expressed his displeasure at the haphazard cuts DOGE was making. But he is supportive of cutting the size of government, just not that supportive of the way it’s being done.

He expressed his concern about Russia, Ukraine, Greenland, and many of our other foreign policies. He wanted those responsible for the top-secret texts on signal to take responsibility for their mistakes and not blame the journalist who broke the story.

But one of the most telling things he said in the press briefing was almost an afterthought towards the end of the conference. He talked about the difference between the public town hall meeting that Congressman Mike Flood held the previous week and the more subdued tele-town hall that he held.

He said that Flood told him he liked holding the more chaotic public town halls because he felt it made the left look bad.

Flood’s town hall wasn’t so much about listening to his constituents as it was about “owning the libs”.

The liberals, moderates, and conservatives that attend these town halls, whether it’s in person or virtually, are all concerned with what is going on in D.C., and they all need to have their voices heard even if the Congressman doesn’t agree with them.

On Saturday, April 5th there will be a nationwide protest to stop Elon Musk and Donald Trump from dismantling our form of government. These will not just be Democrats lining the streets; these will be Americans from all walks of life. Yes, there will be a lot of liberals there, but there will also be conservatives and moderates who may have voted for Trump but have been affected by his actions. Whether they are government workers who’ve lost their jobs, farmers who are concerned with tariffs and the end of USAID, car dealers concerned about the 25% tariffs on imported cars, or citizens concerned about what happened with the Signal texts.

I like and respect Congressman Bacon. I just wish he could be more effective in stopping the move towards an autocratic form of government.

I wish Congressman Bacon could get more members of Congress to remember they are a separate and equal part of government and not members of the Donald Trump fan club. I wish he could reign in the craziness so we wouldn’t have so many people attending town halls and marching in the streets asking What the f$%k.

Tom Becka is a long time Nebraska broadcaster who for over 30 years has been covering Omaha and Midwest issues on both radio and TV. He has been a guest on numerous national cable and news shows, filled in for nationally syndicated talk radio programs and Talkers Magazine has recognized him as one of the Top 100 talk show hosts in the country 10 times. Never afraid to ruffle some feathers, his ‘Becka’s Beat’ commentaries can be found online on Youtube and other digital platforms.

Opinions expressed by columnists in The Daily Record are not necessarily those of its management or staff, and do not constitute an endorsement or recommendation. Any errors or omissions should be called to our attention so that they may be corrected. Contact us at news@omahadailyrecord.com.