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Ben Cline staffer to caller pressing for town hall: ‘I don’t f—ing care’

Chris Graham
jeanne stapf ben cline
Screenshot: Jeanne Stapf/Facebook

Sixth District Congressman Ben Cline doesn’t have time for a town hall, a woman who called his Winchester district office says she was told on Monday morning.

And when the woman, Front Royal resident Jeanne Stapf, told the person in Cline’s office that “this should be a priority,” she got an interesting response back.

“His exact words were, “I don’t fucking care!” Stapf wrote on Facebook after the encounter, which was with a staffer she wrote is named “Drew.”

I’ve tried to reach out to Cline’s DC office to try to corroborate Stapf’s account.

Unfortunately, an email to Cline’s press secretary, Maggie Clemmons, had not been returned as of the end of the normal business day.

Note: I’m writing/editing this piece in the 6 p.m. ET hour on Monday. Stapf posted her item to Facebook at 9:35 a.m. An AFP reader sent me an email about her post at 12:30 p.m. I emailed Clemmons at 12:39 p.m.

I found information on a Ben Cline district office staffer named “Drew” on the LegiStorm website, which lists the staff salary for “Drew” at a salary in 2024 at $51,000.

If what I found there matches up to the person who talked on the phone with Stapf today, I dunno, it would seem that, for $51,000 a year, you could get help that knows not to bless out the constituents.

Stapf offered similar advice to Cline in her Facebook post.

“You should go back and listen to that encounter and let us know when you will hold a Town Hall Meeting. To have your staff disrespect your constituents is unacceptable,” she wrote.

Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham, the king of "fringe media," a zero-time Virginia Sportswriter of the Year, and a member of zero Halls of Fame, is the founder and editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1994 alum of the University of Virginia, Chris is the author and co-author of seven books, including Poverty of Imagination, a memoir published in 2019. For his commentaries on news, sports and politics, go to his YouTube page, or subscribe to his Street Knowledge podcast. Email Chris at [email protected].