U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, the Republican who represents Baker County in Congress, has scheduled a town hall for Wednesday, Feb. 19, at 10 a.m. at the Baker High School auditorium.

Bentz represents Oregon’s Second Congressional District, which includes all of Eastern Oregon and most of the state east of the Cascades.

More than 200 people gathered in the auditorium.

“I think all of you would agree that the last 30 days have been different from the past two years,” Bentz said during introductory remarks.

Bentz showed a slide showing the partisan breakdown of the House of Representatives, with 218 Republicans, 215 Democrats and two independents.

With such a slim GOP majority, it’s imperative that Republican members attend as many sessions as possible to support the party’s platform, said Bentz, a former Oregon state lawmaker from Ontario.

Bentz is a member of the House Natural Resources Committee as well as the Energy and Commerce Committee.

“It took me four years to get on it, and I’m very happy to be there,” Bentz said of the latter committee. “This committee has the largest jurisdiction in Congress.”

He’s one of 30 Republicans on the committee.

Bentz talked about congressional tasks over the next four months, including budget appropriations for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.

He talked about the reconciliation process, which allows bills to pass the Senate with 50 votes rather than 60 votes. He called it a “normal process” that has been used by both Republican and Democratic majorities.

Bentz discussed his priorities, including reducing federal spending, funding border security, extending the 2017 tax cuts which would otherwise expire at the end of 2025, and increasing oil and gas production.

Bentz said income taxes will increase if the 2017 tax cuts aren’t extended.

Bentz said the Energy and Commerce Committee is trying to reduce spending in its areas of jurisdiction by $880 billion over the next 10 years.

Bentz talked about his views on federal spending. He showed a slide stating that 30 cents of each dollar the government spends is borrowed, and that taxpayers pay $1.126 trillion in interest each year on the debt. 

Bentz discussed the more than 65 executive orders President Donald Trump has signed during his month in office.

He also talked about the recent firings of federal employees, including residents of Northeastern Oregon.

“My heart goes out to those people,” Bentz said, a statement that provoked derisive laughter from some in the audience.

He showed a slide stating that in the Second Congressional District there are about 7,877 federal employees, about 2.65% of the district’s total workforce.

“We have to stop spending as much money, and President Trump is doing his best to take action in that regard,” Bentz said.

Bentz said it’s “hard” to spend less. “If somebody doesn’t stand up and say what I’m saying right now, we’re all going to be the worse for it.”

He said it’s not fun or easy to stand before an audience and talk about reducing spending.

Bentz said the 2017 tax cuts boosted the economy.

This story will be updated during the town hall.