Peace Action West

Best Practices For Communicating with Congress

Excerpted and adapted from a report by the Congressional Management Foundation

Sending a letter to [or calling] a member of Congress is not equivalent to casting a ballot or answering a survey, where the choice with the most responses “wins.” Sending a letter to a member of Congress is more like giving a speech at a town meeting or writing a letter to the editor. The content matters. The operating assumption of many congressional staff is that the more thought constituents give to the communication, the more passionately they care about the issue. Quality messages are those that are:

1. Personalized. Even just one relevant and personalized sentence or paragraph in an otherwise generic message conveys some sense of a constituent’s sentiment. The more personalized the message, the better. It significantly helps the communication if one’s personal views, experiences, and the reasons for one’s opinions are included in the message.

2. Short. Congressional staff review hundreds of letters every week, so covering an issue in a few short paragraphs helps them immensely.

3. Targeted. Messages that convey knowledge of specific legislation, the member’s stance on the issue, and the impact the legislation will have on the member’s constituents, district, or state tend to be much more persuasive than generic messages.

4. Informative. Congressional offices do not have the resources to research and track every bill, so they focus on legislation being considered in their members’ committees or by the full House or Senate. Often constituents bring new legislation to their attention, requiring staff to do research so as to be able to discuss and respond to it. For this reason, quality messages contain specific information about the legislation in question.

Sample Lobby Letter to Congress

Support Diplomacy with Iran

I am writing to thank you for co-sponsoring the Iran Diplomatic Accountability Act of 2008 (H.R. 5056). US insistence that Iran suspend uranium enrichment as a precondition for direct talks is counter-productive to the ultimate goal of ensuring nuclear non-proliferation. This bill provides a way for the US to engage directly with the Iranian government and help prevent an escalation of hostilities. I believe that real diplomacy is a tool that shouldn’t be used only to reward one’s allies.

Despite the Bush administration’s repeated insistence that they are not planning to attack Iran, they have not pursued the serious diplomatic negotiations needed to resolve conflict between the two governments.
Both the Iranian and US governments can work harder to end hostile rhetoric and saber-rattling, which will create an environment more conducive to constructive diplomacy.

Sincerely, Your Name and Address