3) Republicans have gotten better at handling hostile crowds

Lawmakers were startled by the ferocity of the protests that greeted them at home in February.

Raucous town halls led to viral moments like California Rep. Tom McClintock fleeing under heavy guard and Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton getting dressed down by an attendee who supports Obamacare.

This time, they were ready. They phoned in local police, imposed new security measures and tightened attendance availability, and it worked, to an extent.

Republicans across the country appeared much more comfortable and better prepared to deal with noisy town hall crowds. Yoho didn’t fire back when he got overwhelmed by angry constituents and protesters. Rather, he’d get down on one knee and gaze directly at his questioner, absorbing any heckling until he could finish his answer. Others defused tension with jokes, waiting out hecklers or by pivoting to safe talking points.

“Let’s do some more!” Coffman said when the moderator called for one last question, at an event that had already gone 45 minutes late. It was a stark contrast from a few months ago, when Coffman escaped out the back door of a town hall event that had been overrun by protesters.