calling your Member of Congress

I mentioned in my last post that I will be calling my Members of Congress about the Wall Street bailout - both Senators and the Congressman for my district here in Maryland. I encourage you to do the same.

You can find your Member info and phone number here.

And yes, they do actually take note of what the constituents say, especially right before an election.

When I was working at NCSL, I had meetings on Capitol Hill all the time and I would hear a number of phone conversations while I was sitting in the reception area of Senate offices. Basically, how it works is Mr. Jones or Ms. Smith calls the Senator (or Congressman) to express ___ opinion on ___ issue. "I'm opposed to the bailout." The staffer gets what city you're from (so they know you're a constituent, and therefore a potential vote for their particular campaign) and marks on a yes/no sheet. That's all they get from you. At the end of the day, the sheet goes up the chain of command. 87 people called in favor, 103 called opposed. Or whatever. Sometimes it's hugely slanted - 523 called opposed and only 17 in favor.

It does work. So if you get a busy signal, keep calling. I remember being on the Hill specifically during a heated immigration issue and the phones were ringing off the hook. The office I was in for a meeting (I don't remember whose it was, or why I was even there) had 3 people working the phones just in the reception area. One call after another after another after another.

Another time, I was trying to call a friend who worked on the Hill and couldn't get through all day. I found out later that it was another hot issue and that particular office had everyone who could be spared answering the phones the entire day. Thousands of calls, one office.

It does make a difference. So make the call.