At Steil town hall, raucous crowd asks about tariffs, ICE, health care

ELKHORN, Wis. (CBS 58) -- More than 300 people watched and loudly participated at a listening lesson Republican Congressman Bryan Steil held Thursday night, July 31.

Most of those in the audience at Elkhorn Area High School appeared to oppose Steil, booing many of his answers and cheering critical questions.

However, there was also noticeable support for Steil, as at least a quarter of the crowd cheered his answers and some yelled for the audience to be quiet when they drowned out Steil's response.

Some of the topics most frequently raised by those in the audience were the Trump administration's tariff policy, tactics used by Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) and healthcare changes under President Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act."

Before the event, a group of protesters gathered outside the school's main entrance. Last week, video showed a group of protesters carrying a mock coffin to Steil's house in Janesville.

Steil told a small group of reporters he expected some opposition at Thursday's town hall but added the coffin display crossed a line.

"I live in a neighborhood where kids love to be outside and playing," Steil said. "They don't need to be exposed to those kind of antics and tactics."

The coffin video was first publicized Wednesday. Steil said the decision to share the video on social media was not intended to undercut opposition at the Elkhorn event.

"There's a bunch of people protesting here today. I don't have a problem where people wanna come and share their opinion. That's totally fine," he said. "I just think there's a need as a country to really come together and analyze the way we're engaged in discourse."

Thursday's discourse was often times loud and angry. At several points, moderator warned the crowd booing over Steil's answers would only shorten the time remaining for other questions.

Many of the loudest moments followed questions about tactics used by ICE, ranging from officers covering their faces during raids to the "Alligator Alcatraz" compound in Florida.

Steil pointed to record-high levels of encounters at the southwest border early on during the Biden administration, which drew boos from many the audience and cheers from his supporters.

Tom Burke from Elkhorn asked one of the first questions, and he wanted to know if Steil believed there was an urgent need for the tariffs the Trump administration as enacted.

Steil said he believed the U.S. needs to have a fairer playing field in trade, specifically as it relates to China. Burke said afterward he felt Steil underplayed the effect tariffs will have on prices.

"I think it's totally unfair from the idea that we're being taxed beyond belief," Burke said. "We haven't even started to feel the effects of the inflationary aspect of all the tariffs."

Another question was about healthcare and whether Steil agreed with other Republicans' depictions of many Medicaid enrollees as lazy. Steil said he did not speak for other House members.

In a conversation with reporters, Steil maintained the bill's changes would not hurt people truly in need.

"I'm of the firm believe that we are completely capable of running an efficient and effective program," Steil said. "To make sure we're helping to get back and up on their feet."

Donna Palmer of Delevan was not selected to ask a question during the listening session. She said after the meeting she wanted to ask Steil about the Trump administration reversing its position on releasing investigative files related to Jeffrey Epstein.

"Are you going to protect our children and demand that all of Epstein's files are released after each victim has been contacted and their confidentiality is protected as they wish?" Palmer said. "That needs to be asked of him."

A CBS 58 reporter asked Steil about the Epstein files prior to the town hall, and Steil said he supported their release.

"Yeah, I think transparency is the best policy," Steil said. "I think all legally permissible documents should be released."

Another tense moment came during a question about the Israel-Hamas war and how Steil believed the U.S. should address the starvation of children in Gaza.

Steil said the quickest way to end the conflict was for Hamas to surrender and release all remaining Israeli hostages, drawing a loud, mixed reaction.

Thursday's event was the fifth in-person listening session Steil has held this year.