I used to work at a Ruth's Chris in Mobile, AL until recently.  During the heat of Gonzogate, one of our guests happened to be Senator Sessions -- member of the Judiciary Committee.  I had met the Senator before at an AIPAC fund raiser for Laura Bush at my uncle's house in 1999 -- I was a senior in high school (and obviously impressionable given my taste in bed fellows).  As Mr. Sessions stood up from his table and started to walk out I told him directly, "Give Mr. Gonzalez hell Senator."  He froze.  He regained composer, smiled, and said "have a goodnight."  His dinner partner went to the restroom and poor Mr. Sessions stood in the hallway.  I went back to him.  I said, "Just do the right thing."  He said, "Who are you?"  I reminded him of the event at which we were introduced.  You know Republicans: throw out an AIPAC heavy hitter and they're all ears. 

We stepped outside and spoke for close to 20 minutes.  Because of the real-time concurrent feed you and your staff give to us, I could call the Senator on nonsense over and over.  In the end, I let him know, the policies that were (at the time) keeping Gonzalez in at A.G. were the same policies that drove a blood thirsty neo-conservative like my past self into a progressive and bleeding heart anti-war liberal. 

I don't know that it had any impact on him.  But I will say this to all of TPM, it had a profoundly empowering effect on me.  To have the confidence that I could take on someone like that, literally take him outside, was -- and still is -- pretty damn awesome.  Thank you.