Congressman Jared Polis’ cheese invite. (Polis Facebook)
It might sound cheesy but Congressman Jared Polis wants to lure constituents to district meetings by borrowing an idea from former President Andrew Jackson.
If you’re a fan of cheese — and my god, who isn’t? — and you want to check out happenings in Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District on Tuesday, read the invitation from Polis, a Boulder Democrat:
In 1837 President Andrew Jackson had an idea: let the people eat cheese — at the White House.
According to popular legend, Jackson had a massive, 1,400 lb wheel of cheese he had received as a gift from a Colonel Thomas S. Meachum, a dairymaker from upstate New York.
But after two years, Jackson had no idea how to get rid of it.
Why not use it as an opportunity to open the doors of the White House to the American public?
So, in the spirit of accessibility and openness, Jackson hosted the original “Big Block of Cheese Day” for thousands of Americans – young, old, north, south, Democrat, Whig – to visit the White House and meet with top-level Cabinet officials and White House staff (and hopefully make a dent into the huge block of cheese while they were at it). Now, 178 years later, the office of Congressman Polis is following suit…
On Tuesday, May 5, my Congressional office will host our own version of “Big Block of Cheese Day.” Constituents are encouraged to visit our Fort Collins and Boulder offices for face-to-face meetings with me and/or my district staff. Staff in DC will be responding to questions in real-time posed on Twitter and on my Facebook page (#AskJared). And for those constituents not able to visit in person, I’ll answer questions via Periscope, a new video-streaming app.
And yes, there will be cheese, courtesy of our friends at Fort Collins-based MouCo Cheese Company.
For more info, logistics, and details, .
We hope you can join us!
Jackson’s idea was so novel that the popular decided to have some fun with it, calling it the “Big Block of Cheese Day.” .
