ITT: What major politicians have you met?

[LAKISYLVANIA]

No foreign politicians

But...

for Belgium
Hilde Crevits (CD&V), who was at the time minister of education. I met her while I went to Brussel to finish some high school exams (some kind of education institution dedicated to just allow you to finish your exams, while not going to school).

Vincent Van Quickenborne (Open VLD), in terms of Twitter perhaps the closest to Donald Trump, because from all politicians here, he tweets the most. I don't think i've met him in person, but he once "recommended my twitter" to his followers, and also gave me his private phone number at some time, mostly related to the weather. Eventually i did nothing with it, due to my depression, but at least it counts for something. He was mayor of my city at the time, and is currently minister of justice. Because he recommended me, some other famous politicians & journalists also followed my Twitter at the time.

Stefaan De Clercq (CD&V), actually not him, but in a child custody case, his wife was my lawyer while he was minister of justice. Ironically the big rival of the former, and also mayor of the same city, and also been a former minister of justice.

I've also spended the night once with the candidate from my political party for my city and for my province, but she didn't get elected... But if polling is true, she will become a MP at the next election, or she might become one.

I don't have Twitter anymore, but I do have Facebook, and for some reason I do have of course a lot of party members as friends, but in some occassions, some people have added me and i don't know why (like the chairman of another Belgian unity party that is a minor party), as well as the rector of Ghent University (and i didn't add him, he added me, and i don't know why, but for some reason he seems to have a lot of marxist-ideological friends). It's quite fun for a student that your rector adds you, and not vice versa (which I would never do, because of the rules of hierarchy).

The irony of all of this, he was added while I didn't know who he was. I assumed he was just another average PVDA member, but he turns out to be my rector, which is weird.

[Roll Roons]

I've seen Obama and Trump speak in person, but did not actually meet either.

Senators: Mitt Romney, Mark Kirk, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Chuck Schumer, Joe Manchin, Shelley Moore Capito, Cory Gardner, John Hickenlooper, Susan Collins, Tim Kaine, Roy Blunt, Rick Scott, Richard Shelby, Cindy Hyde-Smith, John Cornyn, Todd Young, Mike Braun, Kelly Ayotte, Jeff Flake, Claire McCaskill

Governors: Larry Hogan, Bruce Rauner, Haley Barbour, John Kasich, Tom Vilsack, Mark Sanford, apparently Christie Whitman when I was a baby

House: Bob Dold, John Shimkus, Rodney Davis, Mike Bost, Darin LaHood, Adam Kinzinger, Peter Roskam, Jerry Weller, Kevin McCarthy, Steve Scalise, Dan Crenshaw, Will Hurd, Andy Kim, Matt Gaetz, John Katko, David Valadao, Jim Hagedorn, Brian Fitzpatrick, Van Hilleary, and many more.

Others: Tom Kean Jr., Pete Buttigieg, Jason Kander, Tony Blinken. And he's not a politician, but Dave Wasserman.

[FrancoAgo]

I've always done my best to avoid them
the alone i can't avoid is one ex vice president of european parliament that has a house around 100 meters from mine

[AncestralDemocrat.]

Robert Byrd, Jay Rockefeller, Joe Manchin, Evan Jenkins, Jim Justice, Carol Miller, Nick Rahall, Earl Ray Tomblin, Shelley Moore Capito.

Can't really be described as a major politician, but Richard Ojeda as well.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Gov. Hugh Carey (D-NY)
Rep. Liz Holtzman (D-NY)
Rep. Bella Abzug (D-NY)
Rep. Tom Downey (D-NY)
Bess Meyerson (D), candidate for 1980 NY Senate Democratic nomination
Former Attorney General Ramsey Clark (D)
Mayor Ed. Koch (D-NY)
Suffolk County Executive Patrick Halpin (D)
Gov. Ed King (D-MA)
Holyoke Mayor Martin Dunn (D)
FL Senate President Mike Haridopolous (R-Merritt Island)
Rep. Bill Posey (R-FL)

The best story I have was when I met Gov. King of MA.  We were at a parade held there the Sunday after St. Patrick's Day every year; the event was a World Class Drinking Event and I was an active alcoholic at that time (early 1980s).  Gov. King was a jerk because he raised the drinking age, which no active alcoholic could easily stomach.  But I was drunk (in the early afternoon) and there he was, sticking his hand out saying (in a bit of an Irish brogue) "I'm Governor King!".  I shook his hand and said "What's shakin', Gov?". 

The person whom I liked (who I didn't think I'd like) was Bella Abzug.  She was, in some ways, the AOC of her day, but she was personable and a substantive human being in ways AOC can't even dream of.  She was NOT the abrasive person of her media persona; she was friendly and cheerful, combative, but in a "Happy Warrior" way.  Even then, as a pro-life Democrat, I disagreed with her, but I am sorry I did not vote for her in the primary.  (I voted for Ramsey Clark, a vote that I deeply regret today.)   She lost that primary, lost the Mayoral primary in 1977. and lost to a Republican for a Congressional seat on NY's Upper East Side; the negative media rep did her in.  It's too bad; she would have been a better fighter for NY than the corporate hack S. William Green or the shallow Carolyn Maloney.

[Ancestral Republican]

President Fetterman.

[Geoffrey Howe]

I once saw George Osborne queueing at a restaurant.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg, Owen Jones, Dan Jarvis; when i was a small child I had my photo taken with Tony Blair at Hadrian's Wall for some reason (I have a very vague memory of being utterly terrified by the press)

[Clarko95 📚💰📈]

Reviving this thread to brag about meeting Sweden's next prime minister in 2019:



She is very short for a Swedish lady.

We are actually part of a small club and we are both members of a closed Facebook group of ~180 people. So yes if you are wondering, I am indeed part of the (Swedish) deep state/establishment

[President Johnson]

I will be attending a Olaf Scholz rally on September 20. Hope to directly meet my fellow Genosse.

[Ferguson97]

Saw: Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Tulsi Gabbard, Debbie Stabenow

Met: Chris Christie, Phil Murphy, Josh Gottheimer, Frank Pallone, Martin O'Malley, Jason Kander, Bob Menendez, Mikie Sherrill

[Drew]

I shook hands with Tony Evers once.

Other notables that I have seen in person but not met: Pete Buttigieg, Tammy Baldwin, Mark Pocan, Gwen Moore, Pat Quinn, Dick Durbin, Mark Kirk.  Also Sarah Godlewski and Mandela Barnes, one of which hopefully will be our next Senator.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

George Miller (Former U.S. Representative, 1975-2015)
Mark DeSaulnier (U.S. Representative, 2015-Present)
Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (State Assemblywoman, 2018-Present)