To All:
 

This is for the record. I use these methods--most of the time. Works for me and it may not work for you.

To set the stage: President Lincoln, in his Gettysburg Address on 19 Nov. 1863 Said "And the government of the people by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth" (and for the record, the Gettysburg Address only had 286 words in it) President Lincoln stated a relevant truth at a time when our nation stood at the cross roads of survival or extinction, Government is a PEOPLE BUSINESS. Our form of Government, Democracy, is destined to succeed or fail in direct proportion to the number of people willing to participate.

ARE YOU WILLING TO PARTICIPATE??
 

Throughout the course of weeks or a year we are often asked to contact our Senators and Congressmen (Bear in mind that the Senators are MEMBERS of the ELITE CLUB of 100--so these rules may not apply to them).

For example, last week I called the Office of Sen. John Warner about his Amendment on SBP. The Staffer that I talked to said I will call you back so I gave him my TOLL FREE NUMBER and my email address.  I also called the Office of Senators Lott and Cochran and Sen. Nelson. I haven't heard from any of these Office yet. I have told many staffers that I may not be from his District or State BUT his vote on the House of Senate Floor concerns all of America.

These are merely suggestion:
 

Know what Congressional District you are in. If you call or write a Senator or Congressman from another State or District-Chances are EXCELLENT that you will not get a response.

Face to Face meeting are the best but because of the distance involved and time constraints, it is not possible to arrange a face to face meeting.

The next best suggestion is regular mail. However, the regular mail is still restricted and it may take 3 weeks to get to their Offices.

Next best bet is to make phone calls to Offices and try to establish a conversational relationship with the Chief of Staff, Legislative Director or their Military Aide ( most all members have an active duty Military Aide) This method always worked well for me.

When Former Congressman Ronnie Shows was in Congress, Either, He, Phil Alperson or Burns Strider would call me back. Now it may not be within the hour, and perhaps the next day of two but I always got a return call. I always got and answer to my emails. It may not be the answer that I was hoping for but at least I got an answer.
 

The same thing hold true now for Congressman Gene Taylor and his Staffers. They do get back with me.
 

The next best is EMAIL. Why some of these folks don't use it  - this method is beyond me.
 

Before you call or write your letter or send an email: Be sure you know your subject. Use the KISS method. Keep it short and to the point. Only talk about one subject. Normally about 2 and no more than 3 minutes.TOPS

I have been told by some very KNOWLEDGEABLE Staff Members that the above works well.

In addition, they pay very little attention to Form letters or Petitions.

Many Staff members have told me that they equate one phone call, letter or email to about 30 or 40 people on the same subject. They look at the numbers and subject matter. These are people that VOTE.

That matters.
 

Know the Bill number if possible or least the title of the bill.

Again this is the methods that  I have been advised to use and they have worked well for me over the years. Perhaps they will for you.

BUT you must get involved and participate in the process. So the message is: Take part or get taken apart. Again your Choice.

Thanks for listening. Please pass around the net or delete--your choice.

Jim Whittington

Laurel,MS.

 

Jim Whittington, MSGT--USAF--RET