Case in point: this summer I was in Washington D.C. with my mom, my grandmother, and my sisters. During a tour of the Capitol, my mom suggested that I make a phone call, find out if Congressman Paul Gosar was in D.C., and if he was, would he be willing to visit with us while we were there. Fortunately for me, I know his district manager, Penny Pew, so instead of just calling his D.C. office, where I probably had no chance of success, I called Penny. She was able to hook me up. After that phone call, I had an appointment to meet Congressman Gosar in 45 minutes! It was weird to just call a sitting U.S. congressman's office and make a same day appointment, but he and I have known each other for a while. Not only have I interviewed him in the past, but at every event that we are both at I make it a priority to catch up with him.
Elated, because what an opportunity! How many families get to spend some time with a sitting congressman in his D.C. office?! After we finished the tour, we made our way over to Congressman Gosar's office. My family and I walked around inside of the building twice before we found it tucked unobtrusively on the west side of the building. His office used to be Lyndon B. Johnson's when he served in the House. However with a joking gleam in his eye and tone, Congressman Gosar told us that he remodeled it to "remind the Texan that he is from the great state of Arizona." The walls are painted in Arizona's colors of red, blue, and yellow, and the baseboards are painted copper.
As a quick side-note, before I finish the story of our visit, here's a little bit of background on him. He is a dentist, who was unhappy with the shenanigans in D.C. Rather than complain and do nothing, he jumped into the fray. Many politicians cater to special interest groups and he is the same, though his "special interest group" is his constituents and his state. Not only that, but he is easily accessible to the people he serves. He is constantly conducting meet and greets throughout his district. In addition, he took time out of a day with his family to be available for a phone interview with me. His contributions include his recent water rights bill, fighting to prevent congressional representatives from flying first class on the taxpayers' dime, and voting in favor of the "no Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act," to name a few of his activities.
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| Scalpel, forceps, Snickers? |
While we sat and spoke in his office, he settled into a comfortable demeanor and soon we found ourselves completely engrossed in an enjoyable conversation. My little sister even got to hear first hand how even candy can be used in dentistry. One day during a break on the House floor, one of his coworkers' daughters had a loose tooth that had gotten twisted around. Gosar calmly had a member of his staff get a chilled Snickers bar from a nearby mini fridge. As the Snickers was being brought to him, he explained what he was going to do. She was to bite down as hard as she could into the chocolate. After her jaw locked, she sharply opened her mouth and the troublesome tooth remained trapped in the caramel center.
I walked out on cloud nine. I love being able to talk with prominent people. The only reason that meeting was even remotely possible was by having connections. I would like to conclude by thanking the two people who gave me and my family that wonderful afternoon. These "gatekeepers" are Sean Johnson and Penny Pew. Without these two people and the connections they have helped me make, this day with Congressman Gosar would never have happened in a million years.
