MT. VERNON — Cliff Bentz, U.S. representative for Oregon’s 2nd Congressional District, highlighted his work for constituents and fielded questions on a variety of issues during a town hall meeting on Thursday, Aug. 24, at the Mt. Vernon Community Hall.

Bentz opened with a PowerPoint presentation highlighting his work in Washington, D.C., and his travels with the Western Caucus. Bentz also called attention to the fact that he’s worked over 3,600 cases to help people with government issues.

Bentz also described his work as the chair of the House Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee and his efforts with the Judiciary Committee battling crime in places like Chicago.

One of the things Bentz was most proud of was his role in preventing the closure of Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, which currently serves as an F-35 training unit. Bentz said the new agreement will remain in place for 20-30 years.

Bentz also discussed the federal budget, describing entitlement programs as a key contributor to the national debt.

During a question and answer session, Prairie City Mayor Scott Officer asked about getting federal funds to build a new wastewater treatment plant. Bentz replied that he could help the city with existing grants but wouldn’t use earmarks to help the city receive funds.

Bentz also fielded questions about fixing the price of prescription medications. He explained that it isn’t possible to lower drug prices due to the immense amount of drug research happening in the U.S.

Bentz was asked about the national debt and his belief that a conversation about mandatory spending, which includes entitlements, needs to happen. Military spending is by far the country’s largest expenditure but is largely off-limits when it comes to budget cuts.

Bentz’s response was similar to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s on the question of military spending.

“There is no doubt that we need to be careful that when we spend money in the military space that we are spending it correctly, wisely and without waste,” he said.

Bentz added that a significant part of U.S. military spending, both at home and in Ukraine, has to do with China. He added that China has shifted from a desire to take over the world economically to a desire to rule the world through military force.

“The real challenge right now is maintaining the strength of our military to meet those kinds of goals,” he said. Bentz also raised concerns about North Korea, Russia, Iran and Syria.

“We take for granted that we can have a meeting like this and not have people getting shot at,” he said.

Bentz added that the military is the reason why we enjoy the level of safety we do.

When asked about entitlements and fears by some that programs like Social Security and Medicare will eventually be cut as a cost-saving measure, the Republican congressman pushed back, saying that Republicans have never said they’ll cut those programs.

Bentz himself was careful not to mention Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid or the word “entitlements.” Still, a pie chart in his presentation outlining the country’s spending listed Social Security and major health care programs as roughly two-thirds of federal mandatory spending, with mandatory spending making up just under one-third of the country’s expenditures.

When asked why some are calling for cuts or reforms to entitlements programs, which include Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare, Bentz said those programs are called entitlements “by some.”

“The question has always been, if you’ve paid into the program, are you entitled to more than that which you paid into,” he said.

Bentz acknowledged that there are going to be tough decisions to make to bring the country’s budget into line. He said his strategy is to talk to people who were gathered together in town halls and to be honest with them.

“This program, Social Security, is going to drop by 20%,” he said. “It’s not being cut, that’s just the way it is because the money coming in isn’t equal to the money going out. That’s not a cut, that’s a fact.”

Bentz added that if nobody does anything, the program will face cuts.

“I come in and ask people, ‘What do you want me to do?’” he said. “This is all of our challenge. Not just the congressmen or congresswomen.”