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Rally for answers

About 200 people protesting the policies of Republican leaders, including Congressman Bill Johnson and President Donald Trump, gathered at the Start Westward monument at Muskingum Park on Saturday in Marietta.

Amid calls for no changes to the Affordable Care Act, the repeal of the Stream Protection Rule, immigration and administration relations with Russia, those attending Saturday’s event also asked Sixth District Representative Bill Johnson to have a town hall style meeting in the district.

Members of the Next Wave Democrats of Washington County assembled Saturday at Washington County Democratic Party headquarters then walked to Muskingum Park by way of U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson’s office on Front Street.

During the rally, organizer Ben Ekelman addressed an empty chair marked as reserved for Johnson. Ekelman said the group sent a letter to Johnson asking for a meeting and invited him to Saturday’s rally and even delivered letters to his office in Marietta and received no reply.

“The people standing here and listening here in this weather are what it’s all about — after all they are your constituents,” he said. “With this being said, let me say again Mr. Johnson I would bring topics of interest to your attention.”

Ekelman said one of the two issues he finds important are relationships with Russia and calls for an investigation into allegations the Russian government interfered in the 2016 presidential election to be investigated by an independent counsel.

“My second point deals with the seven-country Muslim ban. Although the Ninth Circuit Court found the ban unconstitutional and wrong there have been talks of a new executive order on this issue,” he said. “As the son of an immigrant, what bothers me most, Congressman, is the way it was handled and executed. It was handled and written too quickly with inadequate preparation and analysis and the result of this led to the questioning of the United States from our allies and the world at large.”

Ekelman said the ban and the facts and history do no match up as to why the ban was implemented and banned people from those countries who had obtained visas and green cards. Ekelman ended with asking why Johnson continues to support the ban.

Ekelman said while the Next Wave group is affiliated with the Democratic Party, they are trying to appeal to both sides. He said many young people are frustrated with certain things the current administration has done so they decided to get a young group together.

Marietta High School seniors Alli Westbrook, Abbey Miller and Rosalie Alden said their interest in politics was heightened in 2016 since it was the first time they were eligible to vote.

Alden said many of them were not very interested in politics but 2016 changed them.

“This was such a big election, it really got some of us pretty fired up,” she said. “In group chats people used to always complain to each other about issues but this gave us such a platform.”

They all said the rally and the Next Wave group was encouragement for them to come together in what they said was such a red area.

“It’s good to see a bunch of people who think like you and see people that care,” Alden said.

At 11 a.m. Monday, Wood County Indivisible, the Progressive Democrats of Wood County and other groups will go to the Wood County Courthouse where scheduled is the mobile office of U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.

JEFFREY SAULTON Special to the Times Marietta residents Jayne Stehle, Michelle Stevens and Annelle Edwards hold up their signs during the rally Saturday.

The group will assemble at 10:45 a.m. at Bicentennial Park across the street and walk to the courthouse around 11 a.m., said organizer Jeanne Peters of Wood County Indivisible. Participants will disband after the meeting, she said.

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