Congressman Bishop mourns loss of close friend, advisor

WASHINGTON — When U.S. Congressman Sanford Bishop secured a seat on the U.S. House Appropriations Committee in 2003, the now dean of the Georgia Legislative delegation was smart enough to know he needed someone with inside information to help him navigate the often tricky path of the vital committee that determines life-blood funding to the Georgia residents he represented and, in fact, the entire country.

At the urging of a colleague, Bishop reached out to Michael Joseph Reed, a veteran Washington insider who would become Bishop’s “right-hand man for appropriations” and, more importantly, a close friend.

Bishop talked Friday about his good friend after Reed’s passing on Monday from a long-time illness.

“While I may have been his boss, I was matriculating in the ‘Michael Reed School of Budgetary Policy,’” Bishop said. “Over the years, I benefited from his wisdom as we worked to secure billions of dollars for our constituents.

“And while I had served on the Appropriations Committee while in the (Georgia) state Senate, the Hill (in Washington) is a much more complicated beast. To navigate that responsibility, you need someone who understands the nuances of appropriations on a grand level. Throughout our time together — almost two decades — Michael was a dependable and determined member of my team.”

Reed had earned his chops first as a presidential management intern at the U.S. Department of Transportation and then as a staffer for former Congressman Louis Stokes of Ohio and former Congressman William Gray, a one-time chairman of the House Budget Committee. Reed honed his skills, Bishop said, by expanding his command of the various policy fields entrusted to him and by broadening his network of professionals in an around Washington.

Bishop brought Reed on as an Appropriations Specialist and Legislative Policy Advisor when he was named to the Appropriations Committee in 2003. Reed served in that capacity for 12 years, later becoming the southwest Georgia Congressman’s deputy chief of staff in 2011 and chief of staff in 2015. He held that position until his retirement from public service in 2021.

“I knew I needed someone with the kind of background Michael had,” Bishop said. “A colleague told me about Michael’s skills and suggested I get him on my team. Michael guided me, helped me find the right people to talk to; he was very much a part of what we were able to accomplish.

“I can say without a shred of doubt that Georgia’s and all of America’s agriculture industry benefited from his work. This included bolstering our Congressional agriculture disaster relief to include typhoons, volcanic eruptions, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, droughts and other exigencies.”

Bishop said Reed also was vital to his defense of area military installations’ importance during BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure) hearings.

A Celebration of Life service for Reed is being planned and details are pending.

“It was a privilege to work with him and an honor to know him,” Bishop said. “He will be greatly missed.

“My wife, Vivian, and I, along with my entire Congressional office and committee staff, current and former colleagues and proteges of Michael’s, want to convey our deepest sympathies to his loving wife, Diane Fields Reed, and the entire Reed family.”

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