Residents packed the auditorium of Artspace Charter School in Swannanoa, with some cheering and booing each other's remarks and the congressman's responses. The Republican is serving his fifth term representing the 10th District of North Carolina. But it's only his first since that district was redrawn to include most of Asheville, a Democratic stronghold in an otherwise conservative area.
"We weren't sure how this was going to go. We weren't sure if this was going to be a 'Moral Wednesday," McHenry joked, adding: "It's an honor to serve as your representative. It's an honor to represent the jewel of Western North Carolina, the economic heart of the west."
Facing a torrent of questions about why he voted 40 times to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, McHenry said it was a matter of principle.