With their wedding just days away, Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-PA) and his fiancée, Chelsea Strub, are facing a wave of harassment, including what they believe is a death threat, after a wedding-themed political event targeting the congressman’s record.
A family-run bridal shower gift page created as a surprise for Strub was briefly left public and then taken down after being inundated with dozens of hostile messages. Among the barrage was a post signed “Luigi” that stated, “Be seeing you soon!,” which the couple viewed as a death threat, pointing to its apparent reference to Luigi Magione, the man accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare’s CEO earlier this year.
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Others hurled insults, telling them to “rot in hell” and calling them “textbook grifters” who “won’t be saved when it all burns.”
The harassment began after the promotion of a wedding-themed town hall criticizing Bresnahan’s vote for the so-called “Big Ugly Bill” and quickly spread beyond the gift page. A Facebook page publicizing the event drew similar hostility, with one commenter writing, “Let’s protest the nuptials.” The legislation, branded by Republicans as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, combines tax cuts with reductions to Medicaid, SNAP, and other federal entitlement programs. It was signed into law by President Donald Trump on July 4 after the House narrowly approved Senate changes to H.R. 1 in May.
“It is not what you expect to deal with when planning a wedding,” Strub told the Washington Examiner in a phone interview on Wednesday. “Instead of choosing cake flavors, we are deciding how many members of a security team we need and what guests have to go through to make sure they are safe. There is this cloud over the wedding because of unchecked violence from extremists.”
Strub said the line between policy criticism and personal targeting has been crossed. “Attack Rob all you want,” she said. “But can we keep my family out of it? Violence to this extreme on something as innocent as a marriage website should be called out. Would Democratic leaders want this for their daughter’s wedding website?”
The town hall, held Aug. 5 in Scranton and billed as “Broken Vows: Families vs. the Big Ugly Bill,” was organized by Pennsylvanians Together, a coalition led by the Pennsylvania Policy Center and other liberal groups. It took place at the Green Ridge Club, a popular wedding venue.
Marc Stier, the center’s executive director, opened the event with a mock wedding ceremony, declaring, “Dearly beloved, we are here today not to celebrate but to excoriate the unholy union between congressman Bresnahan and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”
He warned that the measure would push hundreds of thousands of beneficiaries off Medicaid and shower “gifts” on the richest people in Pennsylvania and the nation, a view shared by opponents who argue the law guts safety net programs while delivering substantial tax breaks to the wealthy.
Republicans argue the law, which made Trump’s 2017 tax cuts permanent alongside new exemptions for tip and overtime wages, eliminates “waste, fraud, and abuse” in Medicaid and that its new work requirements for the program enjoy majority public support.
In the days before the town hall, event organizer Dwayne Heisler texted to promote the “Broken Vows” theme. He referenced Bresnahan’s wedding while claiming, “He’s already broken his promises to the people of this district.”
Strub said the message crossed a line, noting, “I’ve even had Democrats I know text me the message and say, ‘Oh my God, I cannot believe they’re doing this. I might disagree with Rob, but this is out of line.’”
In response to questions from the Washington Examiner, Heisler defended the approach, saying the wedding reference was intended as a metaphor for Bresnahan’s campaign promises. “He pledged to protect Medicaid and SNAP, yet instead prioritized tax cuts for billionaires while cutting the very programs he once called essential,” Heisler said. He did not address the harassment or threats the couple says they faced in the wake of the event.
Despite the turmoil, Strub said she remains excited for the big day. “I am about to have a dream wedding, so I am extremely thankful for that,” she said.
“I do not want pity. I just want respect for the sanctity of marriage and boundaries in the political space that should be unspoken.”
WEDDING BELLS RING FOR ROB BRESNAHAN AND CONGRESSIONAL STAFFERS OVER AUGUST RECESS
The threats have been reported to the U.S. Capitol Police and the House Sergeant at Arms, who are actively monitoring the situation amid a recent uptick in threats toward members of Congress. Bresnahan and Strub are set to marry on Saturday.