U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert fielded questions from fans and foes Thursday night in a telephone town hall that touched on pandemic relief legislation, the future of oil and gas production on Colorado’s Western Slope and the controversial Silt Republican’s reputation for what one caller termed “incendiary” Twitter posts.

“I promise you, I will listen to you, and I will be your voice,” Boebert said at the start of the forum, her first since taking office at the beginning of January, adding that 55,000 people were participating.

The freshman lawmaker called for removing protective fencing and National Guard troops from around the U.S. Capitol, contrasting the security measures in place since the deadly Jan. 6 riot by supporters of then-President Donald Trump with Trump’s unfinished wall on the southern border with Mexico.

“People guard what they care about,” she said. “It’s very, very clear that those who are in power here care about themselves, and President Trump wanted to guard our nation’s border, because he cares about the American people.”

After calling the 25,000 National Guard members on hand for President Joe Biden’s mostly virtual inauguration “a little unnecessary,” Boebert joked, “It was nice to have Sen. Bernie Sanders unify the nation,” referring to the meme of the Vermont senator and his rustic mittens that swept the internet.

“The wall is unnecessary and it needs to be taken down from around our Capitol,” she added.

A brief, one-sided exchange about halfway through the 40-minute town hall drew attention on social media, after a woman from Pueblo asked Boebert, “When you’re tried for treason, which prison do you want to do your time in?”

“Next question,” Boebert responded.

Questions ping-ponged between hostile and adulatory.

Out of the gate, a woman from Eagle tore into Boebert, calling the lawmaker’s dearth of public comments about the 3rd Congressional District’s toll from the COVID-19 pandemic “disgraceful.”

As the woman continued, criticizing Boebert for declining to condemn Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene – an adherent of the QAnon conspiracy theory stripped of her committee assignments in a mostly party-line House vote hours earlier – Boebert cut off her constituent mid-sentence to talk about responses to the pandemic.

Boebert said that as a restaurant owner she understands how difficult the lockdown has been.

“I believe in targeted relief for those still struggling, but we have a vaccine. We know who the most vulnerable are and how to protect them. Businesses have to be free to open to get people back to work. Opening our economy is a solution to get the poor economy back now,” she said, adding that she was concerned about the effects of a continued lockdown on mental health and the education of schoolchildren.

The next constituent, from Grand Junction, heaped praise on Boebert for a recent appearance on conservative Fox News Channel host Laura Ingraham’s show.

“I wanted you to know that you did very well. I was proud of you,” the woman said.

Boebert, a frequent guest on conservative TV shows and podcasts in the last month, said she wants to be a spokesperson for Republicans and conservatives, noting that they are in the minority in Washington.

“I want to be a good messenger for you all,” she said.

Later, in response to a constituent who maintained that Boebert’s haters were only going to “rally the base,” Boebert elaborated.

“I think it’s important for everyday, average citizens to have a voice in the decisions that are taking place in our country,” she said. “I think that we are at a turning point where the lawyers haven’t always got it right. We’re $28 trillion in debt, so it’s time for people with real-life experiences, who know what it’s like to take a risk and open a business, create opportunities for people and sign the front of a paycheck, to have a say in America’s future.”

She spoke several times about what she described as the Biden administration’s “war on oil and gas,” including a moratorium on new drilling leases on public lands and cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline, from western Canada to refineries on the Gulf Coast.

“I want to pursue energy dominance,” she said. “I want to get the Jordan Cove pipeline built and export our clean, liquified natural gas to countries who are currently dependent on communist dictators.”

Noting that her husband works in the fossil fuel extraction industry, Boebert said residents of the 3rd CD “care about the land more than any regulation ever will.”

“As a mom,” Boebert said, “I’m worried about future generations. Losing America’s energy independence at the stroke of a pen – it puts our children at risk for future foreign wars.”

Asked for advice from a woman who said she didn’t know how to respond to attacks on conservatives, Boebert said, “My message would be that I wake up every morning fighting for freedom and prosperity. I want every American to have the opportunity to run our lives better.”

Asserting that she wasn’t a politician but decided she “couldn’t sit at home and just complain about” her frustrations, Boebert added, “The negativity that we have is not deterring me. I pray for those that are in opposition. It’s OK, and I understand that it’s not unique to me. I’m not the only one with petitions going around or anything, and I’m not letting that distract me from the work I was sent here to do.”