**Bumped up just to make it easy**
As we discussed on Tammy Radio, you have some work to do this weekend as your congressional representatives come home for the Memorial Day holiday.
I think it appropriate that we must confront our senators and reps on weekend such as this, one that recognizes and honors the sacrifice of regular Americans, who have served and died to protect this nation’s principles, values, and freedom. Let us honor those who have fallen even more by speaking up, and making sure those we have sent to Washington truly understand what it means to represent us, and the repercussions if they fail to do so.
KNOW WHERE YOUR REP STANDS
Numbers USA has an Action Center page which lists the finished votes and upcoming votes, as well a a vote tally in the amendment issues. Note, just because we’re watching so-called amendments doesn’t mean we’re buying into the bill, it’s the votes that interest us, as each amendment vote exposes where your senator stands.
Jawa Report has done an excellent job compiling a comprehensive list of how all the senators have been voting, and have divided up the list based on percentages of how often they have voted with the Kennedy/Spector Amnesty group. (HT Cynthia). An excellent resource.
They list only four senators who have consistently opposed the Kennedy/Spector Amnesty bill, having voted with the senate amnesty group zero percent of the time, i.e. never. Four lone heroes of the senate. If one of these is your senator, make sure he knows how much you appreciate what he’s doing.
Baucus (D-MT) 0%
Coburn (R-OK) 0%
Johnson (D-SD) 0%
Vitter (R-LA) 0%
Representative Vitter proposed an amendment to strike the amnesty portion of the bill. Of course it failed, but over at NRO we now have on the record the hard-core Amnesty Republicans.
Sen. Vitter’s amendment to strike the amnesty section from the bill was defeated this evening, but it might be an informative vote nonetheless for concerned citizens contacting their senators over the Memorial Day break. It was the first vote focused just on the question of whether we should give legal status to illegal aliens; it lost 66-29. Republicans voting against it — i.e., specifically voting for immediate amnesty — were Bennett, Burr, Chambliss, Coleman, Collins, Cornyn, Craig, Domenici, Ensign, Graham, Gregg, Hagel, Hutchison, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, Murkowski, Smith, Snowe, Specter, Stevens, Voinovich, and Warner.
And over at Powerline, the same group, with a few fall offs, of self-obsessed elitists voted to kill Norm Coleman’s attempt to end Sanctuary Cities. All he proposed with the radical idea that local law enforcement be allowed to ask someone about their immigration status. Here’s the list of Repubs who voted to maintain “sanctuary” cities by voting to kill Coleman’s amendment.
Graham (R-SC)
Hagel (R-NE)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
DO NOT RETREAT
First, the reaction to the amnesty bill debacle is not to retreat. On the contrary, we must become especially politically aggressive. Yes, the politicians in office now have mostly failed us but that does not mean that there aren’t good men and women out there who can and want to serve this nation with honor. I’ll remind you that we suffered through Jimmy Carter unknowing that Ronald Reagan waited in the wings. Whenever you feel overwhelmed or hopeless, remind yourself of that, and what we went through before we elevated that great man.
LOCATE YOUR CONGRESSIONAL REPS
Your first mission is to track down your senators and representatives locations for this Memorial day holiday. Check their local office, local newspaper accounts of weekend events, and who will be attending. The best scenario is to meet them in person and tell them what you think–face to face. The next best thing is to contact them at their office. Any time you are communicating, remember to be firm but polite. Decide what you will say ahead of time and while it may not come out exactly as you planned, it’ll be close. Make notes about the elements of the amnesty plan that you especially do not like, making it clear you know what you’re talking about. Be specific.
TELL THEM EXACTLY WHAT YOU WILL DO IF THEY VOTE FOR THE AMNESTY BILL
1) You will not vote for them.
2) You will be active in helping to recruit someone to run against them.
3) You will give money to that candidate.
Your next step is for Tuesday. Once you have confronted your House and Senate Monkeys, call the National Republican Congressional Committee and tell them what you told your representative, and stress the fact that you will no longer give money to the NRCC, and instead will put all your support behind a specific candidate to defeat the your sitting Republican congressional and senate representative. These people understand one thing and one thing only–money. Make sure they know you will hurt them where it counts.
National Republican Congressional Committee
Phone Numbers
NRCC Main Number – (202) 479-7000
News Media Inquiries – (202) 479-7000
Information on Contributing – (202) 479-7000
To contact us by email, please send a message to [email protected].
For Democrats, the advice is all exactly the same. Here’s the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee contact information:
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
Phone: 202-863-1500
Fax: 202-485-3436
Whomever you call, make sure they understand you’re reasonable, informed and this is war. Your future and the future of your children is at stake.
All of the usual suspects. I predicted four of those names without looking.
Do they ever even think to glance at the mail?
This makes me proud to be Senator Vitter’s fellow Tulane Law alum. It makes me ashamed to have interned for Senator Lugar when I was an undergrad. As for my own GOP Senator, Mel Martinez, I’ve never voted for him and knew he was an empty suit and the White House’s sockpuppet since before he was even elected, but that didn’t prevent me from shooting off a scathing e-mail to his office (that I assume he’ll never even read).
Mass email congressional staffers–free and easy.
outsourcecongress.org
You just type in the state, the chamber and the last name. A list of staffer email addresses is generated. Cut and paste and mass email your message.
Thanks for posting the URL.
I got over 15,000 staffers email addresses in the database. Some fail but many work. Please disregard those that fail. As time allows I’m trying to update them.
Kill the Bill; Mail away http://www.OutsourceCongress.org Pass it On
My representatives are buffons, Clinton, Shummer..UGH, as our my congresspeople..so I called others, I did. This is a national issue, not a local one and I demanded to speak to them and raise my views. I did it. Please take the time to do this..Tammy is right. We need to make the difference, our votes still do matter to them..It’s the optimist in me, what can I say.
I gave Chuckie and Hill an earful. As I know that it will go in one ear and out the other..I was reasoned and logical; actually it through the guy who answered the phone for a loop.
Tammy
I have an editorial on how the policies of Sanctuary Cities are similar to slave-trade policies of pre-Civil War America.
You can view at:
http://www.gunnewsdaily.com/Lolli/wl64.html
Senator Hutchison feels the opposition to the sell-America-for-profit-and-votes legislation is the portion that would grant legal status to illegal immigrants. She believes the provision requiring only immigrants who want a green card to touch back is viewed as amnesty. The Senator thinks the legislation will be fixed by requiring touch back before granting the z-visa as well.
I think opponents should stop harping on the word “amnesty”. That encourages Congress to focus on ever more empty promises of punishments and requirements. The consequences of the legislation are unacceptable whether or not amnesty is part of it. There’s the burden on the schools and hospitals, encouragement of lawlessness, impact on culture, economic costs, etc., etc.
The punitive measures are completely unenforceable either willfully or owing to bureaucratic incompetence. The government must demonstrate its willingness and capability for enforcement. The wall has to be built, not promised; border agents have to be hired and empowered, not phantoms; arrests and deportations must occur in substantial numbers, not theoretically. The problem, Senator Hutchison and others, isn’t finding the right words to put on a piece of paper to finesse a dictionary definition, it’s enforcing words already written into law, unless you want to admit you never really meant those either. I’m in no hurry to make lawbreakers more comfortable even if they are being exploited by employers and politicians. You made your choice.
The following article primarily concerns itself with how Citizenship and Immigration Services is funded, but it’s a glimpse of the ineptitude of all agencies dealing with immigration.
Immigration Agency Mired In Inefficiency
Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency that would handle the paperwork for the 12 million illegals (nearly triple the number of annual applications) has a reputation as a broken bureaucracy. It isn’t adequately funded (one wonders why) and is saddled with an antiquated, paper-based filing system. Last summer the agency’s backlog was 1.1 million applications. The agency’s woes stem from the 1986 amnesty.
Tammy:
Thank you for beating the drum.
Since most things are understood by following the money, perhaps this would help resolve the illegal alien situation.
First of all, no amnesty, period.
Secondly, provide a reward for identification and return of aliens to their country of origin.
In as much as it is financially beneficial for some to turn away from enforcing the law, let’s remove that element. That is where the second point becomes feasible.
Levy a fine of $10,000 per alien for the conviction of harboring, hiring, housing, etc. illegal aliens with the fine going towards a reward to be made to the identifier/legal authorities that process the repatriation of the aliens. The fines would be paid for by a direct reduction in federal monies paid to the locality most nearly in a direct line to the location of apprehension.
If the apprehension was made within a city (say Houston), an amount equal to the fine would be removed from any monies directed to Houston. If it were made in a county, then that county would suffer the reduction. If the City, County, whatever wanted to levy a commenserate fine on the violator, then that would be their choice.
A reward of $10,000 per alien could be paid for this way. $5,000 to the Federal Government, $2,500 to the judge that orders the legal deportation, and $2,500 to the citizen (including law enforcement personnel) that was originally responsible for the identification/apprehension.
And, this should involve no catch and release, just apprehend and repatriate, period.
I suspect that sanctuary cities would quickly become a thing of the past, judges would love the additional income, and law enforcement would become real enforcement of “the law.” And, as it started occuring more and more, many of the aliens might decide to head home on their own.
Realistic, maybe. Too simple, perhaps. Effective, absolutely.