TAKE ACTION

RULE 1:  Don’t give up.  Yes, we are represented by people who don’t share our values, but consistency and volume matter.  We must continue to write to let them know we are here and that we’re watching and that we care about our country.

 

1.  Evidently, most state legislators now just have an announcement on their phones, and you have no ability to leave a message.  If that’s the case, letters and emails are the best way to communicate with their state office and will be the topic addressed here.  However, you can call or go in person to their local district offices. For federal offices, use phone calls and email. 

 

2.  Make sure your letters and emails are respectful and fact filled.  It doesn’t take much, just 3 or 4 sentences on why the bill is bad for you or your community.  Short and sweet is better than long and boring.

 

3.  Don’t send form letters.  Ask friends to join you in writing but don’t be guilty of cut and paste.  Those generally don’t even get read.  10 short letters or emails, each written from a personal perspective, will go further than 200 form letters.  Petitions are ineffective and are generally used by people wanting to get your email address.

 

4.  Some legislators seem to have a hard time figuring out the consequences of their policies beyond the immediate.  Put in a point or two about what this will look like in 10 or 20 years.  For example, a letter to Congressman Ruiz in opposition to last year’s $4T infrastructure bill could point out that adding this to the national debt decreases our national security. You could then use this quote from former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Michael Mullen: “I believe the single, biggest threat to our national security is debt.”  Our national debt has now exceeded $27 trillion.  Please vote against the next $4T spending bill that President Biden is proposing for infrastructure and stop endangering our country even more.  That’s all you need, but if you want to keep going…

 

5.  If sending a letter, it’s fun to quote the Constitution.  If nothing else, the staffer assigned to answer your letter will have to read it, and it may very well be the first time they will have read any part of the Constitution.  In the above example, you could point out that the Preamble to our Constitution states that one of the purposes of our government is to provide for the common defense.  Then quote it:  “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” (Defense is spelled as it is in the original document.)

 

 And close with: “Congressman Ruiz, passing additional debt does not provide for the common defense, and it surely does not promote the general welfare or secure the blessings of liberty