Old Mrs Verschoyle with the turnedin eye.

actionfriday:

In the coming weeks and years you will be seeing a lot of requests to call your representatives about issues facing our country. But maybe, like me, you hate calling people SO MUCH. This is a guide for you.

I’m anxious on the phone. My blood pressure rises when I need to call a customer service line, or even just ask the hours at a restaurant. So calling representatives about political issues is one of my least favorite things to do. I posted on Facebook recently about my experience calling my reps and it got a good response. I think there are a lot of us who want to pitch in but hesitate to pick up the phone. With that in mind, here is my shy person’s guide to calling your representative.

BEFORE YOU START:

* Pick an issue. This week I suggest calling to oppose the incoming administration’s cabinet picks:
White nationalist Steve Bannon for chief strategist
Climate change denier Myron Ebell for EPA Administrator
Jeff Sessions, who has a history of racist comments and voting, for Attorney General
Islamophobic Michael Flynn as NSA advisor

* Know that it’s FAST. It takes maybe 2 minutes to call one person, including the time it take to look up their phone number. Think of it like ripping off a bandaid.

* Know that you don’t have to be persuasive. You are really just calling to put yourself on a tally that will be passed along to your representative. You don’t have to convince anyone and no one will try to argue with you. Just say your piece (as awkwardly as you want! they won’t care!) and get off the phone.

* Know that calling is better than emailing. I would much prefer to email, but your message is more likely to get lost in the deluge. When you talk to a staffer you know for sure that your opinion is being recorded.

* Find your reps’ numbers. Go here or here to find out who they are. Call their local lines when possible. Write down the numbers or save them as contacts so you don’t have to look them up every time.

* Take a deep breath.

DURING THE CALL:

* Start with an introduction. I use: Hi my name is _____ and I’m a constituent of Rep./Sen. ____ calling about a concern I have. I see many scripts that omit how to start the call, and it helps me to know for sure how to begin. Be sure to say you are a constituent. They might ask for your zip code, so have that ready.

* Have a script. This is 100% the best way to keep you focused and calm. There are lots of good scripts you can use here or you can write your own. Say what you are comfortable saying. Remember, you are just calling to be counted.

* Expect their response. The thing I see missing from most instructions for calling reps is what to expect in their response. Most of the time they will just tell you they will pass on your concern. Congrats - if they do this then you are done! They might read a prepared statement in response. They might even say that your rep is not going to take action on the issue you brought up. What they WON’T do is argue with you or say, “what a stupid thing to be concerned about.” Don’t let your anxious brain convince you they will do this.

* If necessary, reiterate your request. If they read a statement or say the representative will not take action, don’t get flustered. Just say, Once again, I’m calling on the Rep./Sen. to _____. 

* Thank the staffer and hang up.

AFTER THE CALL:

* Take another deep breath.

* Congratulate yourself.

* Do some self-care. Maybe start here. Or here. Do whatever makes you feel happy and rewarded.

* Know that it gets easier. The more you call, the more you know what to expect. You may even get to know some staffers. You might never like calling but I promise it gets less awful.

(via lonelysandwich)

lumpyrug:

estebanwaseaten:

cianm1301:

livebloggingmydescentintomadness:

I do take some small, cold, bitter satisfaction in one thing, and that’s the fact that Trump is going to be absolutely fucking miserable for the next four years. 

He’s an entertainer and an attention whore, not a public servant. He wants to be on TV and in front of crowds, not actually working a difficult, grueling, stressful job he can’t opt out of. He’s going to have to sit through SO many meetings, be forced to read SO many briefings, get shoehorned into serious business all day every day, without crowds to perform for, and he’s going to hate Every. Single. Minute. 

And then, when he doesn’t deliver on his promises, when he doesn’t build the wall or create jobs or make people rich, when it becomes clear how incompetent and buffoonish he is, the country and all his supporters will turn on him. They’re gonna start blaming him for everything, and those crowds that cheered for him are going to start booing. He’ll be humiliated at every turn, and leave office with the lowest approval rating ever, and he’ll be universally despised. 

Because if he’d lost to Hillary, he would have played the martyr forever, called everything rigged, and had a cushy gig on Fox News complaining every day about how he would have done it better. But now he’s going to have to actually WORK, he’s going to be forced to deal with RESPONSIBILITIES, while surrounded by people who hate him and don’t respect him, people vastly more intelligent and competent than him, and he will be exposed as a loser. And then, we’ll fire him. He’ll go down as the worst president in history. And he’ll have no one to blame but himself. 

I know this isn’t much against the fear of what’s going to happen, but friends, hear me. We are going to make Donald Trump’s life a living nightmare, and I for one take immense pleasure from that. 

Does this mean “Thanks, Trump” is going to be the new “Thanks, Obama”?

He’s also going to learn that, even with Republican majorities in Congress, and even with all that work he will have to presumably put into the job, being the President still isn’t going to be like being a CEO (recall: George W. Bush had a majority in both houses for his first six years, Obama had a majority in both for his first two years). 

The things a President wants to get done are not going to happen quickly or easily, if at all. Passing important legislation is complicated and boring and lengthy. Even signed legislation can take a while to be enacted and is then always subject to appeals and challenges (recall the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate ultimately having to go before the Supreme Court). 

The Constitution will not allow for a lot of Trump’s more horrific ideas to ever get close to reality (this ACLU piece written before the election breaks it down better than I ever could). His Supreme Court nominee has to be approved. His cabinet members have to be approved. Just about everything needs to be approved. And even with majorities in Congress, that’s far from a swift guarantee.

There are checks and balances. We lived through 8 years of Bush (including those first six I mention), followed by the economy collapsing; there are more vigilant eyes and ears watching now than there have ever been. The likelihood of a Trump administration getting away with shit without a drawn-out, bloody fight is slim. Especially when you remember that he’s facing a civil RICO trial at the end of this month plus numerous more lawsuits that have yet to be settled. Especially when you remember that he has no law degree, no political science degree, and has never held a political office of any kind. Especially when you remember that he lost the popular vote. His cabinet and staff will not be filled with the best and brightest because he alienated so many of them, even in his own party.

And most importantly, one or both of the House and the Senate could be flipped in 2018. 

We’re all scared and worried and rightfully so. And the people who voted for Trump are as much a daily threat as Trump himself could hope to be. But this President’s only got two years before his legislative legs can be cut off. Two years from right now. 

Learn who your representatives are, at every level. Figure out how to get in touch with them and get in touch with them, repeatedly. Relentlessly. It doesn’t matter if they’re Republican or Democrat or Independent. You don’t have to wait for some terrible Trumpish idea to get going in Congress – you can write to them about restoring the Voting Rights Act or preserving the Affordable Care Act or protecting LGBTQ rights or fighting climate change right now. These people do not have a job without you. You’re younger than them. The future matters more to you. I’ve seen the working life of a Congressman up close and let me tell you: you can reach them (surprisingly easily, actually). You can get through to them. You can put a face to these issues and you never let them forget it. Be relentless. Be memorable. If they ignore you or forget you, you let everybody know about it. We have the platforms to easily and quickly tell others. Let relevant activist groups know. Let the whole fucking world know.

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” - President Obama 

This is the post. This is the one giving me the most hope. This is the one turning most of my sadness (not all, lord knows I will never be rid of all of the sad) in to vindictiveness, into bitter action, into spite. Into action.

(via kissingunderspiderwebs)