Posted by MitchAnderson on 05/12/09

Here is the email that's been going around to everyone in the district that's been in contact with John Barrow, as he's now supporting HR1207! I want to send a shout out to everyone in the district who's been part of the petition drive, been in contact with John Barrow's offices here in Georgia (especially county coordinators Casey Tucker, Robert McGee, Kathy Pate, Bill Bennett, and Peter Zink), and his office in DC. Without your efforts, this would not be possible. Thanks also to Jesse Benton and everyone at C4L HQ who did the petition drops in DC!

This is John Barrow. Thanks for your e-mail in support of H.R. 1207, the Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009. I've always supported transparency and accountability in government, and that's why I'm proud to cosponsor H.R. 1207, which will allow for more audits of the Federal Reserve and will direct the Comptroller General to conduct an audit of the Federal Reserve and report its findings to Congress next year. The bill will also allow Members of Congress and the public to be better informed about the work the Federal Reserve does and will help us to see any problems that need to be addressed. If you have any further questions please contact my Legislative Correspondent, Chris Baggett. Feel free to call him at 1-202-225-2823, anytime between 9 in the morning and 6 in the evening. We hope to talk with you soon.

Thanks again-

Please note also: John Barrow is part of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of conservative Democrats in Congress. Hopefully this will set in motion a series of co-sponsorships from this group, notably the other three Blue Dogs in Georgia.

Posted 05/12/09 ShaneHolden Dalton, GA

Great news!! We're getting there!

Posted 05/12/09 TDawg2002 Savannah, GA

Great job GA 12 C4L! Way to get it done!

Posted 05/12/09 nadams Atlanta, GA

Next: Rep. David Scott of GA 13 We are planning a mass petition drive on May 30th... Details coming soon.

Posted 05/12/09 jbstoudenmire Albany, GA

I am going to D.C. the first week of June- Georgia District 2 needs to plan a mass action day sometime that week, as I will be dropping petitions off at Sanford Bishop's office then.

Posted 05/12/09 kathypate Aiken, SC

It's exciting to see the reward for diligent and focused effort. Keep up the good work for the other districts.....your reward will come soon enough! I'm looking forward to putting some pressure on Chambliss and Isakson!

Posted 05/12/09 Ike Hall Clarkston, GA

To everyone in the 12th, my deepest thanks and heartfelt congratulations. Print that email out and display it proudly. There are few things more satisfying than getting your representative to actually take a public stand. Way to go! Ike Hall Georgia State Coordinator Campaign for Liberty

Posted 05/13/09 Linda APO AP, Japan

Good morning, everyone! 156 on thomas.gov!

Posted 05/13/09 Average Man Kingston, NY

HERE IS MY SMALL CONTRIBUTION TO THE EFFORT FOR TODAY. IF YOU WANT TO USE IT, I WILL BE HONORED: Rep ______: Although I often disagree (AGREE)with you, it must be said that your views remain steadfast. I am surprised therefore that you have not rushed in to sign on to Audit the FED (HR 1207)? It seems like a bill we could agree on. Please consider it. And please dont support HR 2159. Homeland "Security" (LOL) has called us all potential terrorists. Therefore Rep P. Kings bill is clearly a 2nd amendment violation (and very frightening given Patriot act powers). Unless you are black and white on the future of this country, you and the other politicians will be looking for work. Thank you for reading this. No need to reply, just vote correctly.

Posted 05/13/09 MitchAnderson Madison, WI

I just realized that I'd be remiss if I didn't give thanks to the Savannah/Coastal Tea Party crew, for their support of C4L by offering table space for us there started our petition drive. Thanks should go to Howard Kempf, Jerry Loupee, Marolyn Overton, Jeanne Seaver, Ana Duckworth, and the Spencers (Jason & Melaney). Thanks to all for putting that event on and allowing us to be part of it!

Posted 05/13/09 Bill Greene Amelia Court House, VA

You guys rock! Let's keep rolling for a full slate of support in Georgia! Bill Greene GA Region 7 Coordinator

Posted by MitchAnderson on 04/29/09
Last updated 04/30/09

While this drive to get our petitions may not have been ultimately successful to get John Barrow to co-sponsor HR1207 thus far, the outcome of this event has rejuvenated this District and shown that we're quite capable of acting on Action Alerts, even with a short lead time to prepare!

I was unable to observe the festivities due to a planned trip to Wisconsin that only allowed a few minutes at John Barrow's office before I had to run to the airport, but reports have been trickling in from everyone about what I missed. I'm happy to report that we were able to get 124 petitions signed in just 4 days (and there may be more unreported!) by an energetic group of C4L'ers (and a couple non-C4L'ers!)

I kicked off the day walking in to the office a tad earlier than they opened, and spoke with Wesley Devegter, one of John Barrow's staffers in the Savannah office on Mall Blvd (450 Mall Blvd - Suite A, for future reference). I handed him some information about C4L and what our drive is about (locally & nationally), and told him that there are a growing number of people in this district that want to see transparency in DC, and that it includes the Federal Reserve.

I turned over a stack of 52 signatures I had either collected or received via fax from my county coordinators (thanks Casey and Bill!), and said that there would be a number of people coming in from across the district the rest of the day to do the same. The fact that this was happening concurrently with a number of people at the Augusta office, as well as on Capitol Hill was brought to light, and the pitch was made that we'd be very happy to have John Barrow join with several other Democrats who have gotten on board with this bipartisan effort. It also would be a big highlight for him to be the first Democrat in Georgia in co-sponsor HR1207.

I impressed upon him the benefits of working with us on this issue, and how we'd like to say things in a positive light as much as possible in as brief a manner that I could (because I seriously had to run at this point). He tried to tell us that he would fax our forms at the end of the week, but I told him no - we would like them faxed today. At this point he seemed to realize that we were serious (guess the suit & tie wasn't convincing at first).

The ultimate results? The word I got at my after I left was encouraging, that a number of the rest of us (and a few others not currently registered) trickled in throughout the day, some even just bringing the one form they signed themselves. They were being promised that the forms would be faxed up to DC. We'll see about that, the next time I have a free moment to inquire.

A good number of people participated in this, we a gained at least 4 new registered members, have at least 1 new dues paying member as a direct result of the drive, and collected $60 in donations (without trying!). A number of people have also been in contact that I'd never been in touch with before, and a number of other people have logged in for the first time in months. As a result of the increased contact, we'll be able to have better communication and increased effectiveness for future petition drives and other action alerts.

I'd very much like to say thanks to everyone who signed petitions and/or collected signatures for this effort. We've got a great team in District 12, and I'm proud of your work. I'm honored to be able to be part of this team working towards liberty, freedom, & a sound financial future.

Videos of the events in District 12:

Robert & Kathryn in the Augusta office.

More to come soon...

PS - I was able to stop by Tammy Baldwin's office in Madison, WI [D, WI-2] and left a card and told them to let her know a former constituent wanted to take time to stop by and thank her for co-sponsoring HR1207