In response to a recent article I wrote, one reader replied vehemently, "Why don't you write your Senator!" Sensing that the reader didn't really believe I would do it, I did it. Not only did I do it, I took my campaign into the House of Representatives as well. Before I was finished, I visited dozens of websites of dozens of elected officials. I don't know if I was able to alter the fate of any pending legislation, but I sure did learn a lot about politics. Of course, when I learn something, I want to share it with my friends and readers. The problem is, "Who's going to believe a lowly, unknown writer like me?" All of the sudden, it occurred to me. You may not pay attention to my words, but what about the words of those elected officials?
Elections are coming up next year, and the Democrats plan to hold their National Convention to elect a Presidential Candidate right here in Denver next summer. It always helps to be prepared, but do you want your information from a campaign commercial, or would you rather have directly from campaign headquarters? In the weeks to come, I plan to write all the Senators and Representatives in Colorado and ask for a statement of their various points of view. After that, I plan to address the armies of candidates throwing their hats into the presidential ring and give them the same opportunities to respond. If there are particular officials you want me to write, let me know. I'll do it. If there are particular issues you want me to address, let me know. I'll do it. I'll be doing it on paper, too. I don't want the representatives to think I'm spamming them, and I don't want to make responding as easy as an email away. It takes more time to fill out a form letter on paper and send it through the snail mail.
For my first letter, I wrote Senator Wayne Allard of Colorado. He is neither a Democrat nor running for president, but he is one of the two Senators representing this state. For those who don't know, every state is allowed representation in the Senate by two senators. Colorado's Senators are WayneAllard (R), and Ken Salazar (D). The House of Representatives is determined by population and Colorado has seven representatives. They are: Diana DeGette (D), Mark Udall (D), John T. Salazar (D), Marilyn N. Musgrave (R), Doug Lamborn (R), Thomas G. Tancredo (R) and Ed Perlmutter (D).
Here is the body of my letter to Senator Allard:
July 26, 2007
The Honorable Wayne Allard
521 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Allard:
Recently, I visited your website to discover where you stand on important issues. While reading your position on Democracy and Human Rights, I uncovered errors on your webpage that you need to know about. Also, I want to know what your position is on Darfur and what you are doing to alleviate the situation.
On your website you state, "Protection of human rights was the most important issue when the founding fathers established the Union". Anyone who has studied American History knows this is incorrect. The founding fathers established the Union when they drafted the Constitution. The Constitution the founding fathers drafted did not contain the Bill of Rights. Those came later as the first eight amendments. Additionally, one human right basic to Americans is the right to vote. Women, people of color and Native Americans were denied the right to vote by the original Constitution. In fact, slaves were not counted as people except as 3/5 for the purpose of determining representation. Speaking of slaves, treatment of the issue of slavery was put off for 20 years since many of the founding fathers were slave owners. In fact, five of the first seven presidents owned slaves. Clearly, any student of American History who has read the Constitution knows that a statement as absolute as yours needs some clarification. As a constituent, I need to know what you really meant when you drafted your platform.
Your website also states, "I have worked closely with my colleagues and the current Administration to spread democracy and prevent human rights violations worldwide regardless of people's political, ethnic or religious affiliation." My question for you as a constituent is, "What have you done about the situation in Darfur?" I want to know specifically what you are doing to protect people's human rights worldwide. Closer to home, what are you doing to protect worker's rights in America to make certain that Constitutional Law is upheld? I have read your words on the Employee Free Choice Act, and you must know that legislation of this magnitude did not come out of nowhere. There has to be some basis. Something must be happening for such a Bill to arise, make it through the House, and earn over half the votes of the Senate. Since you feel that having Constitutional Law is enough to remedy any situation, I, as a constituent, want to know your sources and on what provable facts you base your statements and the decision in this matter.
I know you and your colleagues are busy men. Giving fair representation to such a large cross section of people is not an easy job. Nonetheless, you are my elected official and, thus, my voice in the halls of the Senate. I thank you for your time, and I hope that my thoughts help you to more clearly see the constituency you represent.
Sincerely,
Stan Dyer
Of course, the original letter has all of my personal, contact information which would be impractical to print here. I put the letter in the mail this morning and I'll print the Senator's response as soon as it arrives. Next week, I plan to write Senator Salazar. Stick around!