A short time after the the election, a neighbor asked me if I wanted to like a Facebook page she and a friend had started that was dedicated to getting a town-hall meeting with our Republican congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen. The group was tentatively called New Jersey 11th for Change.
I said sure.
We contacted his staff and were rebuffed. We contacted his staff with the offer of a venue and were rebuffed again. We contacted his staff and asked if we could speak with the Congressman and were told no. We contacted his staff and asked about Congressman Frelinghuysen’s positions were on various issues, and we were told they couldn’t tell us.
We got a little frustrated—and a lot more serious. Especially once we found out that he was going to be the Chair of the Appropriations Committee.
We formed a steering committee. The Facebook group (which we’d thought might someday have a maximum of 100 people in it) grew to over 1200 people. We reached out to other political groups and formed alliances. We were joined by disenchanted Republicans who didn’t vote for Trump and who don’t want to be represented by a congressman who supports his agenda. We got offers for website hosting and logo design. We were given a demographic analysis of our area as well as information on the congressman’s vulnerabilities. We began collecting anecdotes about how he treats constituents (not politely, from my understanding). And we’ve begun to build a real political organization to clear a path for a Democratic challenger to his seat.
Last week, one member of the steering committee decided to go to his office on Friday to talk with the staff (as recommended in Indivisible). She mentioned she’d be at a coffee shop beforehand in case anyone wanted to join her. Two other people showed up. It was the beginning of “Fridays with Frelinghuysen.”*
This Friday, more than 30 people showed up.
So did the press.
Customers in the coffee shop (which is in deep Republican territory) asked what was going on. They applauded as we headed off to the Congressman’s office. Seems they’re not happy with him either.
The Congressman’s staff got a glimpse of just how discontent his constituents are, and how much we want him to represent us instead of serving the interest of his Republican party masters.
And we’re only getting started.
*hat tip to good folks at “Tuesdays with Toomey” for the “Fridays with Frelinghuysen” name.