Meeting with your Member of Congress
MAY 2005
PREPARED BY THE ELCA WASHINGTON OFFICE. BASED ON RESOURCES FROM
LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF
In this document
Having a face to face conversation with your member of
Congress is one of the best ways to lift up the concerns and
advocacy goals of the ELCA to the U.S. Government. As elected
officials members of Congress are interested in meeting with
their constituents so they can best represent your concerns in
the halls of Congress. A well-run meeting can move your
Congressperson to become a new leader on an issue, so thoughtful
planning is important.
A Basic Outline
Introduce yourself and briefly name the groups you represent
as well as your personal community involvement (where you live,
church membership, civic group involvement, etc). If you are
representing your Synod, school, congregation or other group it
is helpful to name the number of people who belong to the larger
group, this indicates the level of support that this issue has
in your community.
- Present printed resources to all at the meeting. If you
have petitions, letters, or other demonstrations of support
from your community present them at this time.
- Thank the member of Congress and their staff for any
actions they have taken in the past in support of the issue
(signing letters, voting for amendments, etc) thank them for
their interest and for their time with you.
- Offer personal testimony on why the issue is important to
you. Briefly talk about the people who have inspired you to
take action, the story or report that tugs at your
heartstrings, or whatever your motivation is to advocate on
this issue.
- Share background and new information that would be helpful
for your member of Congress to know when evaluating the merit
of the policy in question. You do not need to offer in-depth
statistical analysis, simply outlining a brief history, key
facts and new trends is sufficient.
- Make your request to your member of Congress and their
staff. It must be clear, time-based, and have a “yes” or “no”
response from your member of Congress.
- Thank your member of Congress at the end of the meeting
and re-state any decisions that were made or any commitments
to follow-up on the meeting.
Do Your Research
Find out as much as you can about your member of Congress
prior to the meeting.
- First, know their current position on the issue and where
you hope to encourage them to take new leadership (through
votes, public statements, letters or other action).
- Then, do surface-level research to find out the basics:
where are they from? are they active in their faith? what are
the primary issues they advocate for? what Congressional
committees are they on? do they tend to vote with a close
colleague in Congress?
- Finally, use your community skills! Based on the basic
research you have conducted you have a good idea of who in
your community may be connected to your member. Ask your
friends, colleagues and neighbors what they know about your
member of Congress and for their ideas of others who may know
your member. This is often the most effective way to learn
about your member of Congress and the best way to approach
them when you have your meeting.
- Based on your research you will know more of where your
member is coming from and who you could invite to accompany
you to the meeting (someone whose opinion is valued by your
member of Congress – maybe a religious leader, educational or
labor leader, business or civic leader, or other community
representative).
Make it
Conversational
Your meeting is not only about discussing issues, it is also
about building relationships. You want to maintain an open,
friendly atmosphere and have more of a dialogue instead of a
presentation. One of the goals for the meeting is to learn more
about where your member of Congress is coming from. Ask
questions about why they support or don’t support the policy,
and try to use the meeting to understand their point of view.
Keep it Simple
While you want to share information you do not want to
overwhelm your member of Congress with technical information or
too detailed information. Your presentation of the issue should
begin with a statement of why you care, share basic background
information, list particular areas of concern, and conclude with
your ask – your request for action from your member of Congress.
Request an Action
Make your request clear and time based.
You can request an immediate action (eg: “please sign this sign
on letter that is circulating in Congress,” or “please vote for
this specific amendment”) as well as a long-term action (eg:
“your voice on this issue is very important, or “can we count on
you to write a letter in the future on this issue to your
colleagues?”). You want to leave the meeting with a clear “yes”
or “no”. This will inform your follow-up plans.
Please contact the
ELCA Washington Office and we will provide helpful information
and resources for planning your meeting as well as assist you
with follow up after the meeting.
Be Sure to Remember
-
Your Congressperson is very busy,
your time will likely be very short, thank them for the time
they offer and do not be surprised if your meeting is brief
-
It is wise to first meet with the
congressional aides. They are often more well-versed on the
issues and they advise your member of Congress on the concerns
of constituents as well as on key policy decisions.
-
“I don’t know” is a fine response,
never try to answer a question that you do not feel
comfortable answering. Simply commit to finding out the answer
for the Congressperson. This gives you a great reason to be
in touch with their office to follow-up on the meeting.
-
Do not yell, accuse, or make demands.
Aggressive behavior is not the way to make friends and
influence people.
- Smile and be friendly, members of Congress are just like
the rest of us.
Follow-up is Key
** Send a thank you note to your
Congressperson and their staff, regardless of the outcome.
** As new information becomes available share it with your
Congressperson to keep lines of communication open. |
