The FCNL Experience: Lobbying on the Lawn

FCNL intern Hannah Misangyi shares her first time meeting a member of Congress.

When I started my first week at FCNL on Capitol Hill, members of Congress seemed like scary celebrities. What could you possibly say that they would care to hear?

By the end of my first week at FCNL, I have been able to learn so much about building connections with congressional offices and their staff members, and using these relationships to make a difference on Capitol Hill.

The first congressman I met was Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, when I had the privilege of accompanying my supervisor, Quaker Field Secretary Christine Ashley, to a Medicaid rally on the Capitol lawn. All I could get out was “It is sooooo nice to meet you.”

It was my second day at FCNL.

Holding our #LoveThyNeighbor (No Exceptions!) signs, we joined the crowd surrounding the senator and several hundred constituents who came to share their testimonies about the importance of Medicaid. They explained the ways in which Medicaid made their current lives possible, and how limited their opportunities would be if they lost it.

Around them, supporters held signs and chanted: “No cuts, no caps!”

After Senator Van Hollen, who has made a point to oppose Medicaid cuts, gave an invigorating speech, I accompanied Christine as she spoke with him. She thanked him for standing with the members of the community that needed support the most, and he in turn thanked FCNL, adding “You guys do great work.”

Slightly nervous and overwhelmed, I shook his hand and smiled.

I learned two vital lessons in that moment:

First, the senator was just a regular, friendly guy.

Second, and most importantly, I learned from observing Christine. Instead of crowding towards the senator as many others in the crowd did, Christine found a member of his staff in the crowd and waited with the staffer, using this opportunity to ask about the senator’s position on Medicaid and what FCNL could to do to best help. The staffer assured us we were taking the best possible action by meeting with Republicans who were working to cut Medicaid in the new AHCA act. Though I was still a little confused what a staffer even was at this point, I would come to learn in the following days that these individuals are the key to making connections and winning a senator’s vote.