If ever there were a time to call your Congressmember…
by David Atkins
It’s one of the oldest adages in activist politics: if you want to have a voice, call your legislator. To a certain extent this really does work: if legislators get flooded with calls about a certain thing, they’ll be somewhat more likely to follow the will the people calling them–assuming it’s not on behalf of or astroturfed by some organization that would never support that politician, anyway.
Of course, most of us also know that directly contacting legislators only does so much good: the real power to sway decisions is usually exercised at much higher levels.
That having been said, the more fraught, difficult and urgent an issue, the more popular input really can make a difference.
On Syria, there is no question but what a large number of Congressmembers are plain and simply undecided on this one. Many of them truly don’t know yet how they will vote. And many of them really would value some input from their constituents in terms of how they feel about it.
It’s a tough decision. Morally speaking, the world should put an end to Bashar Al-Assad’s murderous rampage, and international protocols concerning chemical weapons should be enforced somehow. Pragmatically speaking, it’s not at all clear how missile strikes will help accomplish any goals, humanitarian or otherwise. They’re likely to make the situation worse.
Congressmembers are on the fence here. If you feel strongly about this issue one way or another, there has rarely been a better time to call your legislator and let them know your views as a constituent.
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