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Write Your Congressman
Apr. 25th, 2008 11:29 amIn yesterday's entry I talked about a plan by the Bush Administration to zero out funding for Reading Is Fundamental. The entry also provided a link to RIF's site where one could electronically send a letter to your Congressman protesting the decision. Having written to my elected officials once or twice, and in need of a blog topic, I thought I'd discuss the process of communicating with elected officials. So, in stream-of-consciousness order, here goes.
1) Elected officials get contacted all the time by fake "grassroots" groups. It's called "astroturf" and an unfortunate sign of an astroturf campaign is automated emails. Similarly, petitions and pre-printed "sign here" postcards carry little weight. The logic here is if the voter isn't motivated enough to send a letter, they're not that motivated.
2) Much like sending in a cover letter for a short story submission, your Congressman is probably not going to read it. The letter will get read by some staffer, and summarized in a report. Having said that, writing a letter is still fairly powerful - it shows that people care. If you're a constituent and/or a registered voter, say so in the letter. The Congressman works for you. (If you're not registered to vote, stop here and go get registered then come back.)
3) Form matters. Congressmen get letters from certified nuts, so don't look like one. Be brief, professional and polite. One page letters, and one per issue only, written on plain paper. Hand-sign the letters, and be sure your return address is on the letter. If you have details, like a specific bill, by all means include them. Also, front-load your letter. Your first paragraph should say what your writing about, for or against, so it gets in the right pile.
4) Since the anthrax scare, mail to Congressional offices in Washington D. C. goes through additional screening and scanning. This slows it down. Sending it via fax and/or to the Congressman's local office will get it read quicker.
The above is a mixture of my thoughts and tips gleaned from the National Rifle Association, and are offered for what they are worth.
1) Elected officials get contacted all the time by fake "grassroots" groups. It's called "astroturf" and an unfortunate sign of an astroturf campaign is automated emails. Similarly, petitions and pre-printed "sign here" postcards carry little weight. The logic here is if the voter isn't motivated enough to send a letter, they're not that motivated.
2) Much like sending in a cover letter for a short story submission, your Congressman is probably not going to read it. The letter will get read by some staffer, and summarized in a report. Having said that, writing a letter is still fairly powerful - it shows that people care. If you're a constituent and/or a registered voter, say so in the letter. The Congressman works for you. (If you're not registered to vote, stop here and go get registered then come back.)
3) Form matters. Congressmen get letters from certified nuts, so don't look like one. Be brief, professional and polite. One page letters, and one per issue only, written on plain paper. Hand-sign the letters, and be sure your return address is on the letter. If you have details, like a specific bill, by all means include them. Also, front-load your letter. Your first paragraph should say what your writing about, for or against, so it gets in the right pile.
4) Since the anthrax scare, mail to Congressional offices in Washington D. C. goes through additional screening and scanning. This slows it down. Sending it via fax and/or to the Congressman's local office will get it read quicker.
The above is a mixture of my thoughts and tips gleaned from the National Rifle Association, and are offered for what they are worth.