New Rules of Engagement for 2010

Consider the actions of those supposedly representing us in the House of Representatives:

• They create artificial crises, and use the “crisis” as an excuse to rush through bills, not allowing enough time for them to be read before voting.
• New bills are intentionally excessive in size (often exceeding 1,000 pages) to preclude chances for anyone (especially opponents) to read the bills fully.
• They recently voted against an amendment that would have posted new bills on the Internet three days before voting. They’re committed to keeping the details of the bills from taxpayers. They don’t want us to see what we’ll be expected to pay for.
• Even in the face of extreme deficits, they continue to propose additional new spending which taxpayers simply cannot afford.
• They refuse to allow drilling within our borders and shores while pushing a “cap and trade” program that will kill the coal industry and increase energy costs.
• They refuse to include themselves in the proposed new healthcare program. Apparently, it’s good enough for the peasants, but not good enough for Congress.
• There’s too much more to fully detail here … suffice to say that they are not good stewards of our tax money.

Congress has established themselves as an elite ruling class. It has become painfully obvious that they no longer view themselves as working for the American people. They are better than the unwashed masses and view taxpayers with contempt. Many have come to view their seats in Congress as permanent, tenured positions – i.e., a cushy career for life.

I’ve often wished that I had more clout with members of Congress who represent other states. Like Pelosi, Reid, Frank, Dodd, Schmuer, et al. Since I can’t vote them out, they have little to fear from me or anyone else outside of their district or state. They answer only to their constituents, not to the rest of the country – even though their actions affect the country as a whole.

What recourse do we have? How could we affect an out-of-district/state race when we aren’t privy to the power of the ballot box?

Here’s a thought: suppose we help them “follow the money” … into their opponent’s war chest.

Absent a national soapbox from which our voices might be heard, the only weapon most of us have to affect an incumbent in another district or state is financial support to their opponent’s campaign.

Consider a “if you knew then what you know now” hypothetical: Going back to mid-year of 2008, if you could do it over, how much would you have contributed to his opponent to avoid seeing Barack Obama elected?

How much would you pay today to dump Obama? A hundred dollars, a thousand, ten thousand? More?

The same question applies to Congress. If we could deny the democrats a majority in the House and Senate, and see some of our “ruling elite” be put out to pasture, what would that be worth? A hundred dollars, a thousand, ten thousand? More?

We can’t become complacent, thinking that our Tea Parties, Town Hall participation, and DC protest will be enough. To be sure, those activities have awakened the long sleeping silent majority. But we can’t stop there. There’s more to be done.

We have an opportunity to dump many members of Congress in 2010. The time is right. But, political action must be augmented by cash. Especially in vulnerable districts, the DNC will pull out all of the stops to retain their majority. We need to give ourselves a chance to win.

If we “wake up” after the 2010 elections to find that the dems have retained several seats by slim margins – enough to keep them in power, won’t we wonder if we could have done more? What would we be willing to pay then?

If they retain control, they will continue to force a Globalist/Socialist/Marxist agenda down our throats, and we can’t stop them. They will spend money we don’t have for programs we don’t need. We owe it to our children and our grandchildren to fight the battle under Rules of Engagement that give us every opportunity to WIN. Anything less, and we dishonor the memory of those who gave their lives and limbs fighting for our Constitution and to keep us free.

So, speaking for myself, in the past I have been guilty of only sporadic political activity, this time I plan to do more. I will be silent no more, I owe it to my children, my grandchildren, my country.

It only takes a relatively few contributors to have an impact on a campaign. In the previous example, only 10,000 people (from all across the United States) can have a million dollar impact on ten races by contributing only $100 apiece!!! That doesn’t guarantee success, but it does improve our chances. And imagine if the numbers were greater – it could make a difference.

To be sure, not everyone can contribute $1,000 or even $100 – we all recognize that. Many can only contribute activism and that is also necessary, but if you can contribute dollars – there’s never been a better time.

Considering the bully pulpit of incumbency, those already in DC have two distinct advantages – name recognition and political inertia. Some opponents will have to educate their voters on who they are and why they are a better alternative than the incumbent. Many are not well known. A better financed campaign could make a difference.

Even a million bucks can’t work miracles, it wouldn’t be enough to oust Nancy Pelosi, but it might be enough to dump Harry Reid or John Murtha (I know I’m mixing the House and Senate here, but it’s just for illustration). I want both of them to return to the life of an ordinary taxpayer.

I intend to concentrate on the defeat of ten selected reprobates whom I will target with separate e-mails. In each, I will state why I oppose their current position on one or more major issue(s) and that I will follow their votes and actions and if they continue to stand against the Constitution and the American people, I will contribute to their opponent (by name) and work towards their defeat. It will take some research to identify their positions on issues, their votes, etc. and any statements made MUST BE ACCURATE. Nothing will damage credibility faster than quoting inaccurate “facts.”

Granted, my personal activity won’t have them quaking in their boots, but if they got even a few hundred similar notifications (or even better, thousands), that would get their attention. Ideally, a program like this could give pause to the targeted representatives and make them think twice about blind support for the left’s liberal agenda. It could change a few votes. That is the primary purpose of my plan – to stall these budget-busting schemes before they become law.

What would be helpful would be some national coordination of our targets for dismissal. There is power in numbers.

This must start NOW. The point of getting active NOW is to prevent any more anti-American bills from passing. Six months from now will be too late. By then, some/many could have been signed into law and we’ll play hell recovering from them later (if at all).

BTW, most Congresspersons and Senators should be dismissed anyway, even if they do change their votes. What I’m hoping to do is affect the votes between now and the elections.

That’s my .02 cents worth – and I’m very open to constructive suggestions.

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Here is some reference material that could prove helpful (additional sources would be welcome):

Here is a good listing of all U. S. House members and contact information (by state) at: http://vote-usa.org/ElectedOfficials.aspx?State=U3&Report=U3

And a Wikipedia .pdf of all House members with additional information. This .pdf shows their Congressional District, how they lean (D or R) and the PVI (partisan voting index) which indicates how strongly they lean (high number means a strong leaning), and how their district voted in the 2004 and 2008 Presidential election.

http://www.cookpolitical.com/sites/default/files/pvistate.pdf

Here is a Cook Political 2010 House competitive race chart showing “likely,” “leaning,” “toss-up,” etc. for each House district (with incumbent names):

http://www.cookpolitical.com/charts/house/competitive.php