Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Next Letter Writing Campaign - Aiming For Specific Targets



The indentured educated class has carried out several successful letter writing campaigns over the past several months. The primary focus has been to send Roberto Rodriguez in the White House letters. (We've also written to the Department of Education. Sadly, they have really failed to do their job and respond). The last letter writing campaign to the White House was via email. I did that for a specific reason: after 9/11 there were those anthrax scares, and many of you may recall that several Senators' offices were targets of these letters filled with the deadly poison. That's when - naturally and understandably - the White House and others in D.C. had detectors put in place for these sorts of things. That means that if you send out handwritten notes by "snail mail," it can take a very long time for them to arrive. So, the fastest way to get things to the right people is to send letters via email. Of course, if you wish to send your own notes by post, I encourage you to do so. But it's good to be aware of the delay and the reasons for it.

Here's a quick breakdown of the dates and links for the previous letter writing campaigns, as well as a few links to letters I sent off as an advocate:

(a) May 24, 2010 - the final announcement for sending off the letters to the White House;
(b) March 4, 2010 - Sen. Webb's response to my letter;
(c) February 5, 2010 - my call with the White House;
(d) February 3, 2010 - update on the first letter writing campaign to the White House.

That's actually the short-list, because I frequently email the Department of Education and have made a point to send countless follow-up emails to the White House.

While we've had some luck, I am enormously dissatisfied with this approach. Therefore I want to shift our attention to Senators and Representatives, and that can entail those at the state level, too. Currently, I am drafting a list of names of specific individuals whom I'd like the indentured educated class to make an appeal. Moreover, many of you have been involved in writing to your representatives on a regular basis, so if you have emails for actual people (i.e., the higher education policy staffer in Sen. X's office), please let us know. It's important to receive your feedback and suggestions, and I urge you to provide us with comments below.

If you're in, please send me a quick email (ccrynjohannsen at gmail dot com). I receive hundreds of emails a day, so please include this in the subject (that way, I can group them in the right file and make sure you're not left out): COUNT ME IN! (June 29, 2010). Please make sure to include the date. Thanks! 

I will draft the letter and then request your feedback. This method allows more people to volunteer, and it also provides everyone with the opportunity to give me suggestions.

Stay tuned.

2 comments:

Rhonda K. Donaldson said...

Oklahoma Senators:

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?State=OK


Coburn, Tom - (R - OK) Class III
172 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5754
Web Form: http://coburn.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contactsenatorcoburn?p=ContactForm

Inhofe, James M. - (R - OK) Class II
453 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-4721
Web Form: http://inhofe.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm

I have heard once from James Inhofe (form letter) but never from Coburn.

Sad

gail said...

Kentucky
Senator Jim Bunning (R)
316 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
PH-202-224-4343 Fax-202-228-1373 http://bunning.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?
FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm


Senator Mitch McConnell (R)
361-A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
PH-202-224-2541 Fax-202-224-2499 http://mcconnell.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=ContactForm
Louisville Office
601 W. Broadway
Room 630
Louisville, KY 40202
Phone: (502) 582-6304