Meet with Your Members of Congress When They're Home

Oct 13, 2011

This fall, Congress will be making critical decisions about how to bring the U.S. budget back under control. Your members of Congress need to hear from you--and they will be back in your area several times in the next few months, which makes it easier for you to get in touch with them.

Please consider making an appointment now to meet with your members of Congress or their staff in the district office. Use the visit to ask your members of Congress to support cutting $1 trillion from the Pentagon budget over the next 10 years. Below, we offer some resources to help you make your appointment and to make the case for Pentagon spending cuts with your members of Congress.

Resources for Making Your Visit:

• Congressional schedule. The Senate is scheduled to be on recess on October 24-30, and the House is scheduled to be on recess on October 17-23, November 7-13, .and November 21-27. During these times, members are more likely to be home.
• Location and contact information for your members' districts offices. Use our congressional directory to find out the location of your members' closest offices and how to get in touch with them.
  
• How to schedule a lobby visit.
• Tips for meeting with members of Congress or their staff.

Resources on Cutting the Pentagon Budget:

Consider printing copies of some of these documents to leave with the office after your meeting.

• How to cut $1 trillion from the Pentagon budget. This report from the Sustainable Defense Task Force gives specific ways the money could be cut--without endangering national security.
• How much is the Pentagon budget rising? Even with the cuts proposed to date by Congress, the Pentagon budget in 2021 would still be significantly higher than it is today. This chart has the details.
  
• The Pentagon wastes more money in a year than most cabinet agencies get to spend. This letter written by Senator Tom Carper (DE) identifies hundreds of billions of dollars in waste and overspending.
• People from across the political spectrum are urging cuts in the Pentagon budget.

Need Some Help? Want to Know More?

• See an article from our newsletter on Lobbying Close to Home.
• See more of the resources we have to offer on FCNL's views on the debt and how to get it under control.
• If you have questions about setting up a visit or need some more information, please contact our office at 202-547-6000, x2504.