MONROE — As cost-cutting chaos grips Washington and has agencies scrambling nationwide, Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, reached out to constituents in our part of the state Thursday for a “virtual” type of town hall.

And she wasted no time in feeling the pain of area Democrats, who urged her to fight harder against the efforts of President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk to gut the federal government, including Medicaid for the poor and food assistance.

“I’m fighting at the table,” she said, referring to budget cuts generally and ongoing negotiations on funding to keep government open. “A lot of what we are seeing so far, and I am a lawyer, is unconstitutional and illegal.”

The event was billed as a “virtual town hall with south central and southwest Wisconsin residents” and comes as lawmakers take the larger fight over the role of the federal government in American life to the minutiae of a crafting a temporary, continuing budget resolution to maintain basic services.

Democrats, she acknowledged, are not in a great position either, as they either must support temporary funding by the feverish cost cutters, or use the budget showdown as their main defense on the continued destruction of government jobs and functions.

“It leaves us with really bad choices,” she said.

GOP members have seen some raucous town halls in recent weeks as they return to their districts to constituents concerned about cuts to programs they rely on. Some stopped having them. Democrat town halls have been tamer, but not immune from the anger. 

Prior to the new administration, Baldwin said her office would get 50 to 100 phone calls a day; a number which has risen in the second trump administration to over 1,000 per day.

Lawmakers, she said, are “bombarded” daily by messages on both sides, but especially from constituents angry about the speed, depth and audacity of government cutting that was not authorized by Congress.

She said she understood the fear that comes with losing health care, or paying for food, but that this is no time to stand by and do nothing in the face of such injustice.

“Even if it’s not in person, it’s vitally important for us to connect,” she said, urging residents to continue speaking out and contacting their congress members.