The Bitterness towards Sanford Bishop........WHY?

2nd Congressional District Congressman Sanford D Bishop, Jr of Albany has always demostrated a knack of attracting support from voters who are either independent, conservative, & in some cases; Republicans in the 2nd Congressional District.

But every since 2009 there have been such a harsh backlash towards Bishop that it has left me scatchng my head.

Ok, he voted for the controversial, divisive Helathcare Reform Legislation, then he voted for the Cap & Trade Bill that went no where. Then there was the CBC Scholarship episode that accused Bishop of handling scholarships out to relatives, but it was his wife Mrs. Creighton-Vishop, a municipal court clerk at Muscogee County who was in charge of the selection process, which Bishop didn't know that scholarships was going to relatives instead of needy students.

And then there was the so-called fraud involving the "Pigford” settlement between the government and black farmers who claimed that a Department of Agriculture farm loan program discriminated against them. South Georgia farmers Eddie Slaughter and Willie Head complain that Bishop did nothing when they asked him to investigate the Pigford settlement & that more settlement money went to lawyers and people who aren’t farmers than to them and other active farmers. Nothing ever came to these accusations.

And now everywhere you look, you see people saying "Bishop has to go" or "Boot Bishop", I mean my god, do some people in the 2nd really can't stand Rep. Bishop that much?

Now did he dip his toe in the tempting liberal waters with those votes I mentioned? Yes!

But make no mistake about it, Bishop's no liberal except last year when his voting record was as liberal as Nancy Pelosi.

But Congressman Bishop, a graduate of Morehouse & former State legistator has always been a moderateto conservative democrat for the 2nd District.

Bishop has co-sponsored amendments to the U.S. Constitution protecting the U.S. flag against acts of desecration, preserving the institution of marriage as between a man and a woman, ensuring a balanced federal budget, and allowing voluntary, non-denominational prayer in schools and other public localities. He also is a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights, receiving the grade of “A+” from the National Rifle Association.

He has also supported Tax Relief for working men & women of the 2nd & he has & will always look after the agriculture interest of the 2nd, no matter what, which I didn't understand why so many farmers & those with Ag interest in the 2nd Congressional District would just turn their backs on Bishop who has fought tooth & nail to support & strengthened their interest in D.C. Many speculated that is was his vote for the Cap & Trade legislation. Maybe, it was more than that! Was it a protest vote against Pelosi & Obama?Was it just a anti-democratic vote? Or did they really leave bishop because of his job performance, which if you ask me has been pretty damn good for a region, SW Georgia with high levels of poverty.

Bishop, like him or not has gotten a raw deal from those who voted against him last year. Did many of these anti-Bishop voters forgot about all the good things he's done for the 2nd District? For some, they only look at 2008 & beyond rather than the whole 19, going on 20 year (Jan 2012) record of Bishop. I also hear some mention that Bishop only represents one segment of the 2nd Congressional District.................ARE YOU KIDDING ME? So Bishop only supports Black voters in the 2nd & not whites? Please! Stop trying to make Bishop the politician for "Blacks" Only. That's not going to work! Bishop first won the 2nd when it was a majority white district back in 1992 & since then it has changed, which is now comprised of 47% African-Americans.

Currently he is ranking member of the Subcommittee for Defense, the Subcommittee on Military Construction-Veterans Affairs & the 3rd ranking member on the House Agriculture Committee. Bishop is the go-to guy for Georgia Agriculture now that Saxby Chambliss no longer sits on the Senate Agriculture Committee.

I normally do not come to the defense of politicians here in Georgia, but I made a exception here. Bishop is well liked by many here in the 2nd, whether you are black, white, liberal, moderate, conservative, republican, democrat, independent, libertarian. All of the criticism Bishop has gotten (especially from hardcore republicans) & still continues to get is uncalled for. Nobody's perfect, people! If Bishop was a republican, you can bet your last dollar he wouldn't gotten the kind of scrutiny he's been getting over the past year.

Im curious to see will many of the longtime voters Bishop lost last year come back to Bishop or have they got caught up in the left vs right divide that's destroying our country.