What Can We Do?

Dr. Bill Smith, ARRA News Editor & Political Activist: I often receive comments from people at meetings and conferences or via phone-calls, emails, Twitter and FaceBook messages, blog comments, that express their frustration with the direction that our country is headed. Then they often ask: “What can we do?; Can I make a Difference? and / or What else can I do?” They usually believe their members of Congress are not listening or responsive. Many have written letters or e-mails and have impersonal form letters, and they feel that their efforts in contacting their Congressional members do not make any difference. They feel helpless.

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Their feelings are valid but it is also true that their actions are making a difference. Today, Gary Bauer, Campaign for Working Families shared in his newsletter that he experiences the same thing. And he provided the following comments which may prove helpful:

If your feedback didn’t matter, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid would have already rammed through ObamaCare. Remember, that was the plan. They wanted to vote on it before the August recess, before members of Congress had to go home and face the voters. Don’t forget that. The fact that a vote didn’t happen is a testament to the overwhelming grassroots reaction. Trust me: Your feedback matters. The problem is that there are too many liberals in Congress today and, yes, too few grassroots conservatives taking action.

When I respond to folks who ask me what can they do, I ask them: Have you called your congressman? Have you written a letter to the editor? Have you encouraged your pastor to speak up more on values issues? Have you organized a discussion group in your church, neighborhood or workplace? Have you talked to your children or grandchildren about important issues? Have you attended your local party meetings? How many new voters have you registered since Obama was sworn into office? Do you financially support conservative organizations that are fighting for your values? When was the last time you volunteered for a candidate? At that point, many folks just shrug their shoulders and walk away.

My friends, I’ve said this many times, but elections have consequences. And the consequences of recent elections have given us the most leftwing president in history, backed by overwhelming Democrat majorities in both the House and the Senate.

That’s why the House of Representatives narrowly passed a massive energy tax, which a newly-released government report says will cost jobs. That’s why the Democrat-dominated Congress passed trillion-dollar stimulus bill that has yet to stop the rise in unemployment. That’s why the Democrat-dominated Congress passed Barack Obama’s $3.6 trillion bloated budget, which the Associated Press even acknowledged “produce $9.3 trillion in deficits over the next decade, more than four times the deficits of Republican George W. Bush’s presidency.” That’s why the Associated Press also acknowledges that ObamaCare will force taxpayers to subsidize abortion. These are just some of the consequences of recent elections.

Unfortunately, there are no “quick fixes.” For example, there’s a lot of chatter in the blogosphere about impeaching Barack Obama. Obama is a symptom of our problems, not the cause. The fact is more Americans voted for him and for liberal Democrats in the last two elections. But Obama is not going to be impeached. That would require a super-majority vote of 67 senators and there are only 40 Republicans in the Senate today. The fact is there are 60 liberals in the Senate and Nancy Pelosi is Speaker of the House.

Clearly conservatives have to do a better job of winning the battle of ideas and turning out our voters. The good news, as the previous item demonstrated, is that Obama, Pelosi and Reid are helping us tremendously in that effort! But elections matter most. If you don’t like the policies coming out of Washington, there is only one solution: Change the politicians making them. We have to start winning elections.

If you have had enough of this radical agenda and really want to do more to help our movement, you need to devote your time, energy and resources to doing the things that are necessary for conservatives to win elections. Rather than wasting our efforts looking for a “quick fix,” we need to contact members of Congress, educate friends and family members, register new voters and support conservative causes and candidates.

Considering Bauer's short list, let me expand on these:

• Here is a link to help Contact your US. Senators or Representative!
• Voter Registration: If you are not registered to vote, you cannot register others to vote. There is online assistance for in most states to register yourself or to help you walk a close family member through the process at your computer. Search for your State's government website or Secretary of State site and look for a link to register to vote. Also, you may go to your County clerks office and register to vote. Ask your County clerks for forms to register other people and be sure to follow the required procedures. Don't wait for an election, register early and help to register others who have like minded beliefs. If ACORN volunteers can do voter registrations, you can too!
  
• Educating Friends and Family: Desperately needed! Keep your ear tuned to conversations of their frustration. Then share on ways they also can get involved. If you are reading the ARRA News Service online, thank you. You may also subscribe and receive our posts the next morning by email. It is free. Then you can forwards articles easily on to others by email.
  
• Support Conservative Causes and Candidates: There are many local, state and national causes and candidates needing support. It is critical that conservatives regain the Congress in 2010 and in this effort you can be a critical player. There are a wide range of Conservative non-political organizations working on your behalf posted under "Editor's Picks" on the right hand side of the ARRA News Service. Also, there are many ways for you to increase your involvement either locally and nationally. If you would like my advise, you can find me on Face Book, Twitter, and on several sites under my name or as Ozark Guru. The ARRA News Service identifies an email address at the top of the site. As a national political activist, I'm willing to make suggestions based on your area of interest and location.
  

In summary, I understand your frustration: "I'm mad as Hell." But as the saying also goes, "I am not going to take it anymore." If you are not already active, join us in taking back America for conservative values and principles!
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Dr. Bill Smith (Ozark Guru) is a retired military officer and retired professor. He is the editor of the ARRA News Service, America's Best Choice and several political and commercial sites and authors articles on other online sites. He serves as National Political Director for Conservative Solutions and as an adviser to candidates and campaigns. He twitters @arra.