Sanford Bishop: Dean of Georgia’s U.S. Congressional delegation | Features

Ready to make his mark and determined to, like his hero, Martin Luther King Jr., do something that would “have an impact on the South where I grew up,” Bishop was torn between seeking a law degree and applying to the seminary to, like King, become a pastor.

“I talked with a mentor of mine, Howard Moore Jr., and told him I was facing a dilemma in my life,” Bishop said during an extended conversation. “I told him I was considering law school and the seminary, and he asked what it was I wanted to do with my life. I told him I wanted to do the things that Dr. King did, and he encouraged me to ‘keep (King’s) dream alive.’”

So Bishop, a native of Mobile, Ala., entered Atlanta’s Emory University Law School, where he would become the university’s Student Government Association president.

“(Moore said) we have enough preachers,” Bishop said during a telephone conversation from his Washington office. “At Emory I received a scholarship that was tied to the NAACP Defense Fund, so when I got the opportunity I went to New York City for a one-year internship to work with civil rights lawyers. Through that internship, I was sent to Columbus to work on a case in which a black Columbus police officer was fired by the police chief.”

Returning to his Southern roots, Bishop found himself embroiled in the issues of the day and eventually got involved in politics. Still, though, the calling of the church never left him.

“When I was elected to the state legislature, I had a ‘congregation’ of 30,000 to look after,” Bishop said. “When I was in the state Senate, I had a ‘congregation’ of 150,000. Now, I have a ‘congregation’ of 730,000 (in the 2nd Congressional District).”

Bishop spoke at length about his career in state and national politics, a career that now has him, with the recent death of celebrated Georgia Congressman John Lewis, as the “dean” of the state’s U.S. delegation with 29 years in the U.S. House.

In the first part of this series, Bishop talks about his early career and the accomplishments that have impacted him — and the state he represents — most.

ALBANY HERALD: Talk, if you would, about your childhood in Mobile and the impact it’s had on you as a man and a Congressman.

SANFORD BISHOP: I was born and reared in Mobile and went to college at Morehouse University. I was at Morehouse when Dr. King was assassinated. Since he was my hero and I wanted to emulate him, I was torn between going into the ministry or to law school. I came back South from New York (after choosing the law) to work on a lawsuit involving a police officer in Columbus, and while I did not actually work on that case, I got involved in a prison rights lawsuit at Reidsville State Prison. The frustration I encountered from that suit — which ended six years later with the prison reforms we’d sought — is part of the reason I decided to run for the (state) legislature.

AH: You grew up in an urban setting, but one of your strongest group of constituents now consists of farmers. You head an Agriculture subcommittee and are recognized as something of an ag expert. How did that come about?

SB: I grew up in the city, and about the only time I really was involved in the outdoors was when I went to Boy Scout Camp in the summers from when I was 11 to 18. I became an Eagle Scout and spent a lot of time teaching younger Scouts. Now I never imagine that I would run for elected office, but when I was elected I quickly realized that while my district included a large urban area (Columbus), a lot of the surrounding areas were rural and relied on agriculture. Same thing in the state Senate, representing mostly Chattahoochee and Muscogee counties. Realizing how vital the rural portions of the district were, I started reading a lot about rural life and agriculture. I called up (then-U.S. Rep.) Wyche Fowler’s office — at the time I knew almost nothing about ag or peanuts, which was one of our major crops. His office put me in touch with Bob Redding, who gave me a three-hour crash course on the phone.

When I was elected to represent District 2 in the U.S. House, I promised the farmers in the district that if there were things I didn’t know about agricultural issues, I would call experts. And I have; I let them teach me. They trusted me to learn all I can, and that’s what I’ve done. It’s been a labor of love.

AH: When you serve 29 years as part of a government body, there are significant, historical events that you become a part of. What are some of the things you consider your major accomplishments in office?

SB: I figured when you contacted me about doing a story that that was something you’d want to talk about. So I went back to the beginning and started looking at these things and it was pretty astounding. Some of the things that come to mind are:

— During my first term (as a state representative) there were sewer overflow issues (in Columbus) that resulted in EPA sanctions. We helped secure funds for the overflow problems that eventually resulted in the development of the city’s River Walk and allowed downtown development to take place.

— The Flood of ‘94 affected most of the 2nd Congressional District … roads and utilities were affected, and Albany State University was under water. We were able to secure help from the Clinton Administration, and through a childhood friend who was a liaison in the White House, I got to know key folks in the administration. I invited the president to tour the area, and he and I visited many shelters together.

— The support for Albany State with (post-flood) funding and other grants was a key accomplishment.

— Starting in 1996 and through the present, I have been in a position to impact the Farm Bill, which is crucial to our area. The peanut program was on the brink of devastation, but we were able to protect vital subsidy payments. There was talk of ending quotas, and that would have devastated many farmers.

— Droughts and other vagaries of weather have made research funding vital in our region. I remember being involved with research that helped eradicate the boll weevil, which was destroying our cotton. I’ll never forget preaching the “funeral” of the boll weevil at the (Sunbelt) Ag Expo.

— I’m very proud of the C.B. King Federal Courthouse located in Albany and that it was named for the civil rights attorney. People in Albany had been trying for 20 years to get a federal courthouse, and I’m pleased to have been a part of making sure it was appropriately named.

— There are so many things: Getting the post office in Albany named for Dr. Carl Gordon; bringing in millions of dollars of funding for the Housing Authority in Macon; working for recovery funds for Albany and Macon after floods in ‘94 and ‘98; working to have the Ocmulgee Mounds named a National Historic Site; the BRAC (base realignment and closure) was huge to our area, working to keep our area military bases open; helping bring $2.5 billion and bringing 20,000 new jobs to Columbus with the expansion of Fort Benning during the peak of the (2008) recession.

And, now, the toughest thing we’ve dealt with is this pandemic. It has revealed how challenged we are with health care. And it’s been my goal to help rural Georgia, rural America, the rural 2nd District. The most important thing I do in Congress is to help individual constituents use the political process to improve their lives. I believe our government is of, for and by the people, and it’s my goal to make the government more user-friendly.