Town hall meeting with Dallas lawmaker turns rowdy

A rowdy and vocal crowd let their opinions be known at a town hall meeting with State Rep. Pete Sessions of Dallas.

Sessions was often times drowned out by the more than 2,000 people at Richardson High School.

He discussed the Republican efforts to replace Obamacare, Planned Parenthood,  Russian interference in American affairs and cutting funding to Meals on Wheels. The nationwide program delivers hot meals and conversation to those who need it.

"A lot of elderly people don't think about fixing a meal, they have difficulty going to the store, or difficulty fixing a meal," said Meals on Wheels supporter Sally Shea.

Many of the organization's chapters rely on different levels of federal funding. That funding may be cut to balance the nation's budget.

"It's a significant portion of our budget," said Keith Harrison, the marketing manager for Meals on Wheels in Tarrant County, "It means we have to make the money up somewhere else, or cut the number of meals we serve."

Right now they serve one million meals a year in Tarrant County. Federal funds cover 44 percent of their yearly budget. But more than $1 million of that could be in danger with the president's proposed cuts.

Among applause and boos, Rep. Sessions said it's unlikely Meals on Wheels funding will be touched, instead they would look to eliminate duplicate programs to save money.

"No president's budget has ever passed," said Rep. Sessions,  "There's no reason to assume this budget will survive exactly as it is. There will be changes that will be made, there will be additions."

For now, reps for Meals on Wheels Tarrant County say nothing about their service has changed yet.

They're monitoring what's going on in Washington and encouraging people to contact congress members to voice their opinions.