Apparently, Republican lawmakers did a similar retreat this time last year. I found this article online which indicates that it was held at a hotel in Philly. I have no idea as to the credibility of the source or their agenda as it appears to be a "local rag".
http:// www.phillymag.com/news/2017/01/25/republican-retreat-agenda-philadelphia-donald-trump/
Sutherland Springs, TX. Benton, KY. Small towns are the perfect place for FF operations. Mechanicville, NY would be an ideal place for such an operation. If you were the (good) guys and you got wind of a FF attack being prepared, what better way to thwart it than by executing "drills" and highly publicizing it to let the (bad) guys know you're on to them and their evil plans. Just my intuition.
My father was a MKUltra victim. I took this excerpt from an email he sent me shortly before he passed away. Hopefully it will give some clarity as to what ((they)) are capable of doing to an individual:
Remember you have no power, you are just an antenna to be used by others to be their robot. If you give them a chance they will train you like a dog mixing pain and pleasure using low frequency microwaves. With voice to scull tech they can read your mind place thoughts in you mind and have you say and do things that did not originate with you.