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Contact Your Elected Officials
Federal and State

The house of representatives ... can make no law which will not have its full operation on themselves and their friends, as well as the great mass of society. This has always been deemed one of the strongest bonds by which human policy can connect the rulers and the people together. It creates between them that communion of interest, and sympathy of sentiments, of which few governments have furnished examples; but without which every government degenerates into tyranny. --James Madison, Federalist No. 57, 1788

Contact Your Elected Officials Directly!

Some legislators no longer offer public email addresses, which means you can't contact them through our Contact Center. If any of your Senators or Representatives is one of these legislators, you can still reach them electronically through their contact page; look up their website at http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm or http://www.house.gov/MemStateSearch.html then click through to find their contact pages. Add them to your "favorites" or bookmark them, so you can contact them easily at any future time.

Website Lets You Vote to Cut Gov't Programs - The massive federal government budget deficit has been a key factor in the rise of the Tea Party. Given the choice, a lot of Americans would probably like to cast their own vote on what government programs should be cut from the budget. Now they can using the Internet website "YouCut." YouCut was created by House Republican Whip Eric Cantor, R-Va. It's a web page that lists five different federal programs every week and lets users vote either online or by using their cell phone on which program they think should be eliminated. Cantor will then try to bring up for debate on the House floor, the program that receives the most votes.

The Capitol.net web site provides more information on when Congress is in and out of session.

Commentary: Do You Feel Nervous about Calling Your Lawmakers? by Ashley Horne - Do you feel hesitant or unprepared when Focus on the Family Action asks you to call your lawmakers on a big issue? You�re not alone. It�s normal to feel nervous the first few times you contact your U.S. representative or senators. But Focus Action is here to make the process as smooth as possible. We�ve been helping people connect with their elected officials for a long time. So, here are some tips � The Three Cs � for when you receive an �action alert� in your CitizenLink e-mail or see it on our Web site. First, Be Concise. Most of the time, it is more than enough to say something like: �Hi, this is Sally Smith. I�m a constituent and am calling to ask Senator X to vote no on this bill.� It's OK if the person answering the phone does not take down your name. And if you want to comment more on the issue, you can. CitizenLink typically provides a few extra talking points. Second, Be Confident. Remember, your representative and senators work for you. Not the other way around. The person answering the phone is there to tally responses from constituents in favor of or opposed to legislation. They are not there to argue with you about the merits of the bill. But what if that happens? What if you are mistreated, ignored or � even worse � belittled by the staff member who takes your call? This brings us to the final point: Be Courteous. No matter what happens, always be polite to those who work for your lawmaker. It�s a great witnessing opportunity. CitizenLink provides feedback forms for you to let us know how your phone call went. And you can always e-mail us your feedback. If need be, we will connect with your lawmaker�s office to encourage his or her staff to communicate more hospitably with constituents. If we had a final �C� to give you, it would be this: Courage. Thank you for your courage in contacting your lawmakers when you hear from Focus that action is needed to defend family values on Capitol Hill. If you�ve never contacted your elected officials, give it a try today. If you�d rather e-mail your lawmakers, CitizenLink can help. However you choose to take action, remember the steps: Be Concise. Be Confident. Be Courteous.