Reporter Responds To Rep’s Interview Walk-Out: I Asked A ‘Fair’ Question

The reporter whose question prompted a Republican congressman to walk out of an interview said he was just trying to hold the congressman accountable for his unusual town hall procedure.

Josh Scheinblum, KCRG-TV9’s chief investigative reporter, spoke to TPM over the phone Tuesday about an extremely brief interview that has since gone somewhat viral, with Rep. Rod Blum (R-IA).

Blum walked out of the interview after Scheinblum asked if would accept donations from individuals outside of his district, given that he was checking IDs to ensure that only his constituents attended his town hall Monday night.

“I’m done,” Blum said, standing up to leave. “This is ridiculous. This is ridiculous. He’s going to sit here and just badger me.”

“That’s not something that happens at public meetings,” Scheinblum told TPM, referring to Blum’s insistence on checking identification at the door to ensure only residents of his district were allowed inside. The practice has grown in popularity this year, as Republican members of Congress have faced harsh town hall crowds and organized activist groups like Indivisible.

“So I thought, ‘Listen, if this is something new that you’ve decided to do, the floor is yours, could you please explain why this decision was made?’” Scheinblum continued. “And I think the follow-up about taking money from outside the district, I think is a fair question. If you would listen to someone, I guess, who donated in your same party from outside the district, why are they being barred from listening, too?”

Rep. Blum’s office did not respond to TPM’s questions.

“I really just wanted to get questions for our viewers, and sure, I think I was surprised that the interview ended so quickly,” Scheinblum said. “I wish I could have asked more questions.”

Another detail of the interview that ended too soon: Blum hadn’t told KCRG ahead of time that he planned on conducting the interview flanked by children.

“When he came to do the interview, he’d brought all these kids, and I said, ‘This isn’t what we had talked about with your staff,’” Scheinblum recalled. He said, paraphrasing, that Blum had responded with something to the effect of, “Well, you know, all Republicans are evil, right?”