Schumer Drop-Off/Meeting Packet

8/14/2019 Schumer Drop-Off/Meeting Packet

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/schumer-drop-offmeeting-packet 1/43

Draft Letter to Schumer (to be delivered on 2/18)2009-02-16

February 18,

2009

The Honorable Charles E. Schumer

757 Third Avenue Suite 17-02

New York, NY 100172009

[Attention: Lucy Harmon]

Dear Sen. Schumer,

I am writing to you on behalf of tens of thousands of MoveOn.org

members in New York State to request a meeting with you during the

President’s Day Recess (the week of February 16th).



MoveOnCouncils in New York City are engaged in a nationally

coordinated effort to win change in congress; and last month, we delivered

13,000 petition signatures and comments from your constituents

(throughout New York State) showing their support for an economic recovery

plan that invests in clean energy, green jobs, and Healthcare. We were very

pleased that Ryan Whalen (then, Director of Intergovernmental Affaires)

was there to review our very first petition installment – since it inspired him

to engage the 30 or so MoveOnmembers who gathered outside your office to

show their support for urgent economic recovery.

This is our ambition over the next couple of months – to meet with our

local congressional representatives (or their staff) and make them aware of

the issues that matter to their constituents. We plan on continuing our

efforts to demonstrate the overwhelming public support for our agenda. To

that end, please accept the new (enclosed) petition installment –

600 photos of our members in New York pledging their continued

support for President Obama’sprogressive agenda.



We were hoping to arrange a meeting with you this week to introduce

ourselves and let you know about MoveOnmember’s major priorities for this

year as well as our legislative agenda for the upcoming weeks and months.

At this fast-moving moment, we are focused on green job creation,

energy and infrastructures – and we are especially interested in

discussing a Policy Proposal for a Clean Energy Corp. To date, we have

been unsuccessful in securing a face-to-face meeting with you or someone

at your local Manhattan office; if possible, we would like to arrange a

meeting between now and the following week (ending Friday, February 27)

to discuss our urgent green agenda.

Thank you in advance for considering our request and reviewing our

petition materials. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Nora K. McDonald, Regional Coordinator

MoveOn.org Political Action Network

Estela Duce, Manhattan Council Leader



[LIST: Other Members Who Attend]



Guide for Organizing a Congressional Meeting

Guide for Organizing a Congressional Meeting February 2009

This is a step-by-step guide to organizing your event. Be sure to check

the materials page for important downloads.

You should have already chosen a location and start time, and

registered your event in our online tool. If you haven’t done so, click here.

Contents:

1. Requesting a meeting.

2. Getting ready for your preparatory gathering

3. Agenda for your preparatory gathering

4. Final preparations for your congressional meeting

5. Facilitating an effective congressional meeting

6. After the meeting

1. Requesting a meeting




If you don't already have an appointment at your senator or

representative's office, you need to act immediately to get on their calendar.

Here are some tips:

* Be polite. Whether or not you agree with your senator or

representative's politics, treating the staff you talk to with courtesy is the

best way to get a meeting.




* Ask for a meeting with the senator or representative. If you're

told that he or she is unavailable, ask to speak with the District Director or

other senior staff member.

* Say that you're asking on behalf of local MoveOn members who

want a meeting. It's important to be clear that you represent local

constituents.

* Explain that you want to share MoveOn's priorities for the new

Congress—health care, economic recovery, green energy, and ending the

Iraq war. You should also explain that you especially want to talk about how

we can best address the economic crisis by investing in the creation of a new

green jobs economy.

* Be persistent, and follow up. You may not get a firm answer right

away, so don't give up. Call back every few days to check on the status of

your request.

* You may be asked to submit a written meeting request. If so, click

here for a sample letter you can work from:

http://pol.moveon.org/congressmeeting/meetingrequest.doc

* Not sure how to find your local congressional office? Check

www.house.gov or www.senate.gov for contact information.




2. Getting ready for your preparatory gathering

When meeting with members of congress—or their staff—it's critically

important that everyone participating is well-prepared and knows his or her

role. So the week before our congressional meetings, from February 10 to

15, we're holding special preparatory gatherings. We'll invite local MoveOn

members who are interested in participating in a congresional meeting to

attend a preparatory gathering first.

At these gatherings, we'll go over the purpose of the congressional

meetings, assign roles, and practice running through the meeting agenda. To

get ready, make sure you:

A. Listen to the host conference call

On Monday, February 9 at 9pm ET / 8pm CT / 7pm MT / 6pm PT, we

held a national conference call to go over what you need to know to make

your event a success. To listen to a recording of the call, click here:

http://www.spiderphone.com/RealCast/7802657763/a_RAM.ram -- or, to

listen to this recording over the phone: dial 1 (888) 550-5602 or +1 212-

812-2800, press #1 on your phone, and enter recording code 78026 57763




B. Print out the materials you'll need

* Sign-in sheet

* A few copies of the Clean Energy Corps proposal executive

summary

* Congressional meeting agendas (one copy for each guest)

C. Test listening to the issue briefing

To make sure people can hear the special briefing we've recorded

about green-economy issues, you’ll need a fairly loud speaker attached to

your computer. Before the gathering:

* Check your sound: Sit across the room from the computer to

make sure everyone at your event will be able to hear sound from your

speakers.

* Check your software: You'll need to have Flash and Realplayer to

connect to the webcast.




* Bookmark the webcast page: You'll click here on the night of the

gathering to listen to the briefing:

http://pol.moveon.org/congressmeeting/webcast.html

D. Watch the training video, if you haven't already

If you didn't participate in last month's Congressional Action Training,

you'll want to find some time before your preparatory gathering to watch a

special 20-minute training video with everything you need to know about

holding a congressional meeting: http://vimeo.com/2750507

(We'll also share this link with your guests before the gathering, so

they have a chance to watch the video as well.)

E. Read about the proposal for a Clean Energy Corps




At our meetings with Congress, we'll ask their support for a "Clean

Energy Corps"—an idea proposed by several environmental, labor, and social

justice groups. It's an important first step on the road to a green economy.

It would create hundreds of thousands of green jobs through programs to

make buildings more efficient and install clean energy technology. And it

would help fill those jobs with a combination of job training and a big

national service program like AmeriCorps.

To learn more about Clean Energy Corps before your meeting, check

out the following information from Green for All, a new organization helping

to lead the charge for a green economy:

* Executive summary (4 pages):

http://pol.moveon.org/congressmeeting/CEC_execsum.pdf

* Full report (40 pages):

http://pol.moveon.org/congressmeeting/CEC_full.pdf

(We'll also share this information with your guests before your

preparatory gathering.)

3. Agenda for your preparatory gathering






* Meeting Leader: Someone to facilitate the meeting and make sure

you stick to the agenda. This role should be filled by you or a trusted leader

from your local MoveOn Council, agreed upon in advance.

* Petition Presenter: To kick off the meeting, we'll be presenting a

photo petition from our "Real Voices for Change" campaign, showing local

constituents expressing their support for President Obama's agenda for

change.

* Storyteller (optional): Ask if anyone at your gathering has a

personal story of being affected by the economic crisis, or if they work in a

green job. If so, you could have someone share their story in order to put a

human face on the issue.

* Pitcher: This person will be responsible for directly asking whether

the member of Congress will support the creation of a Clean Energy Corps.

* Recorder: You'll need a volunteer to take careful notes of what

happens.

* Supporting Actors: If possible, bring a few other people to the

meeting to show our strength, even if they don't have a place on the

agenda.




When filling these roles, you'll want to pick people who are comfortable

speaking articulately in front of a group, and who are prepared to follow the

agenda. Avoid giving a speaking role to anyone who seems like he/she

wants to talk about other issues or has his/her own personal agenda for the

meeting.

If you don't have enough volunteers to assign each role to a separate

person, you can combine them. For example, the Meeting Leader could also

play the role of the Pitcher.

D. Practice for your meeting (30 min)

Next, if you haven't already, hand out the agenda for the meeting.

Everyone should take about 5 minutes to read over it. Quickly address any

questions that people have.




Then, spend 5-10 minutes brainstorming about what to expect from

your senator or representative. Your meeting will be much more effective if

you spend some time in advance thinking abut what response you might get.

Ask the group, "What do we know about Rep./Sen. [NAME]? What is his or

her record on job creation and climate issues? How might he or she react to

the idea of a Clean Energy Corps?" (If your group doesn't know very much,

ask for a volunteer to do some research before your congressional meeting

and report back.)

In the remaining time, practice what to say in the meeting. The best

way to do this is to do a run-through, using the agenda as your guide. You

shouldn't read straight from the agenda text—just use it as a reference.

Pick someone who won't be speaking at the meeting to play the

member of Congress or staff person you'll be meeting with, based on the

results of the brainstorm.

Ask everyone else to pay close attention and take notes—you'll be

relying on them to provide feedback afterwards.




After you've finished a practice meeting, pause and take some time for

discussion. Go around the room and ask each person to share one thing they

thought went well in the practice, and one thing that could be improved in

the actual meeting.

If you have time, run through the meeting one more time, paying

careful attention to any areas that the group identified could be improved.

E. Wrap up (5 min)

Thank everyone for coming, and remind them of the date, time, and

location for the congressional meeting. Make sure you have the name, phone

number, and email address for every person who agreed to come to the

congressional meeting.

- -

What to do if you can't get a meeting on the calendar




It can be difficult to actually schedule a sit-down meeting with a

member of Congress (or even their staff). If you are unable to get a meeting

scheduled, you should go ahead and plan a "drop-off" of the photo petition

and Clean Energy Corps information! Here are a few tips on how that works:

* You'll probably be able to have a meeting if you just show up. Plan

a time for your group to go to the office together. When you arrive, introduce

yourself to the secretary, explain that you tried multiple times to schedule a

meeting, and request to speak to whatever staffer is available. They'll

probably find someone to sit down with you. If so, then hold the meeting as

outlined in the rest of the guide!

* If they deny you a sit-down meeting once you're there, just

deliver the petitions and Clean Energy Corps information. If they deny you

the chance to sit down, you can still make an impact. Tell the secretary why

you're there, and ask if you can leave the photo petitions and Clean Energy

Corps information for the member of Congress. Finally, ask for a sit-down

meeting sometime soon!

- -




4. Final preparations for your congressional meeting

A. Join the conference call for Meeting Leaders

On Monday, February 16 at 9pm ET / 8pm CT / 7pm MT / 6pm PT, we'll

hold a national conference call for Meeting Leaders to review the agenda for

congressional meetings and offer some important tips. To join the call, dial

212-812-2800 and enter 6031 9796. And if you can be online during the call

(this is optional), go to: https://www.spiderphone.com/60319796

B. Make reminder calls to your meeting participants

The night before your congressional meeting, make sure you call

everyone from the preparatory gathering who agreed to come to the

meeting. Make sure everyone knows their roles and has practiced what

they're going to say. Encourage them to arrive at least 10 minutes before

the meeting is scheduled to begin.

C. Print out the materials you'll need

* "Real Voices for Change Photo Petition" to share with the member

of Congress, available through your host tools page (the photos are coming

soon—we'll email you when they're available)




* One copy of the Clean Energy Corps proposal executive summary,

to present to the member of Congress

* Meeting agendas (one for each guest, in case participants forget

to bring a copy)

(We'll email you when all the materials become available.)

5. Facilitating an effective congressional meeting

As the Meeting Leader, it's up to you to make sure everything goes

smoothly—your fellow MoveOn members will be counting on you step in if

there's a problem. Below are a few tips—and for more, be sure to watch the

Congressional Action Training video.

* Use the agenda. You want to make sure you follow the agenda we

provide—this is your handy guide to what you should cover during the

meeting, and it's what other members are expecting you to cover.

* Control the conversation. Our elected officials work for us, and we

request meetings with them to communicate our priorities. Be polite, but

don't allow your member of Congress, or his or her staff, to redirect the

conversation to another purpose.




* Don't linger too long on the "Real Voices" photo petition. The

purpose of presenting the photo petition is to creatively illustrate our depth

of support—not to get sidetracked on unrelated subjects. Transition quickly

into talking about the opportunity to create a green economy.

* Keep your team focused. If someone in your group starts to veer

off-subject, it's your job to politely step in and get things back on track. If

necessary, saying something like "Thank you for offering your thoughts, but

I'd like to give someone else a chance to talk now"—and then call on

whoever's next on the agenda.

* Make sure you get an answer. Elected officials often hedge when

asked directly about a concrete proposal like the Clean Energy Corps. You

may not be able to get a firm yes or no answer, but follow up until you're

satisfied that the official you're meeting with understands the request and

commits to getting back to you about it.

* Remember that you're building a relationship. No matter what you

think of your member of Congress's politics, it pays to have a good

relationship with them and their office. So be cordial, and express your

interest in working together in the future.

6. After the meeting




A. Send a thank-you note

No matter the outcome of your meeting, it's important to send a short

thank-you note to the person you met with—and one to anyone in the office

who was helpful in getting your meeting scheduled.

B. Send in photos

Make sure someone at the event takes photos with a digital camera.

Send your best photos to [email protected]. (Please try to

send the photos from the same email address you used to host or sign-up

for an action. Please also be sure to send the photos as attachments, not

pasted into the body of the email.)

C. Fill out a short survey.

Also, please take a minute to fill out a short survey. The surveys are

really important—they help us understand what works and what doesn't. We

want to make our future events better and easier for you. This is the best

way to let us know how to do that. We'll email you the survey just after the

event—keep an eye out for that.

aboutpresscontact ushome




Paid for by MoveOn.org Political Action, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not

authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

MoveOn.org Civic Action is a 501(c)(4) organization which primarily

focuses on nonpartisan education and advocacy on important national

issues. MoveOn.org Political Action is a federal political committee which

primarily helps members elect candidates who reflect our values through a

variety of activities aimed at influencing the outcome of the next election.

MoveOn.org Political Action and MoveOn.org Civic Action are separate

organizations.



Congressional Meeting Agenda

Congressional Meeting Agenda February 2009

1. Introductions (Meeting Leader, < 5 minutes)

Go around the room and allow everyone to quickly introduce

themselves, giving only their names and the

cities where they live—any more, and it could end up taking the entire

meeting!

2. MoveOn’s Top Priorities (Petition Presenter, 5-10 minutes)

• There are thousands of MoveOn members in [Rep./Sen. NAME]’s

[DISTRICT/STATE]

• In December, we voted on our top priorities for 2009: winning health

care for all, recovering from the

economic crisis, moving to a clean energy economy, and ending the

war in Iraq.

• We’ve compiled a photo petition with the faces of MoveOn members

here in [DISTRICT/STATE]

and the issues they care about—here it is. [Present the petition.]






4. The Ask: Create a Clean Energy Corps (Pitcher, 10 minutes)

• An important first step in moving to a green economy is the creation

of a national “Clean Energy

Corps,” an idea proposed by several environmental, labor, and social

justice groups.

• It would create hundreds of thousands of green jobs through

programs to make buildings more

efficient and install clean energy technology. And it would help fill

those jobs, through a combination of

job training and a big national service program like AmeriCorps.

[Present the information about Clean

Energy Corps.]

Will you [or Rep./Sen. NAME] commit to support legislation

creating a Clean Energy Corps this year?

If you don’t get a firm answer, try to pin them down -- see the next

page for more on how to respond.

5. Wrap-up and Thank You (Meeting Leader, < 5 minutes)




Thank the person for having a meeting with you, make a plan to be in

touch to follow up on your meeting,

and express your interest in working together in the future.

Paid for by MoveOn.org Political Action, http://pol.moveon.org/.

Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

Responding to Your Representative or Senator’s Position

on a Green Economy and the Clean Energy Corps

If the person

you are meeting with… Then you should:

Says that the member of

Congress will definitely

support a Clean Energy

Corps

• Thank them for their support!

• Ask whether we can share their support with Green for All

and our coalition partners.

Is interested in a Clean

Energy Corps, but

noncommittal




• Thank them for being open to this idea.

• Restate the urgency and importance of creating jobs while

tacklingclimate change. For instance, you could say:

“We all agree that we need action to fix the economic

crisis. And we’re know we’re running out of time to

address our energy and climate crisis. Investing in a

green economy is the best way to solve our interrelated

problems–we can’t afford to wait. And the Clean Energy

Corps is a great first step.”

• Try to identify specific concerns about the proposal and

respond to them as well as you can. (If you don’t know the

answer to something, that’s fine–say you’ll get back to

them. Don’t make anything up.)

• Ask when you can expect to hear back from the office.

Is skeptical or hostile to a

Clean Energy Corps.

• Thank them for taking the time to meet with you. You

don’t want to have a meeting that ends on a hostile note.

• Try to identify specific concerns about the proposal and

respond to them as well as you can. (If you don’t know the




answer to something, that’s fine–say you’ll get back to

them. Don’t make anything up.)

• Restate the urgency and importance of creating jobs and

tackling climate change (see above).

• Encourage them to review the information we provided and

consider supporting the proposal.

• Ask when you can expect to hear back from the office.



More info on Clean Energy Corps

Who is Green for All (in terms of their political connection)?

Green for All is a group based in Oakland, California that formed in

recent years specifically to connect the dots between creating jobs for low-

income Americans and addressing the climate crisis. Their mission is

described here: http://www.greenforall.org/about-us/our-mission. Their

founder, Van Jones, wrote a New York Times best-seller called the Green

Collar Economy -- and there's a great profile of Van in a recent New Yorker

magazine that goes in-depth explaining the origins of Green for All, and how

he and they think about environmental and economic problems:

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/01/12/090112fa_fact_kolbert.

As for their political connections, Green for All is friendly with groups

working on community and economic development, as well as many of the

"traditional" and well-known green groups like the Sierra Club.

Where is the Green Energy Corps in development right now?




Right now it's a proposal with a lot of interest on Capitol Hill, but it

hasn't been introduced as a specific bill in Congress. It's up to us and other

grassroots groups to show Congress that there's a clear demand for this

visionary plan.

The stimulus that passed on Friday included $500 million in funding for

green job training, which will be dispersed through a competitive grant

program. This is related to the CEC, but it's not the same. The CEC isn't just

job training; it's a massive public works program like the Civilian

Conservation Corps. So now that the stimulus has passed, the CEC is a great

next step to make sure we're shifting to a green economy.

Has Green for All sent their report for Clean Energy Corps to

Senators to review? Are we trying to get sponsorship for this

proposal?

Green for All has been circulating the proposal in Washington, and

"people are generally excited by this bold idea." Now they are working to

build support and identify individual champions to help move it forward.




Green for All has said that members of Congress who may be

especially receptive include:

Rep. John Tierney

Rep. Keith Ellison

Sen. Bernie Sanders

Sen. Harry Reid

Sen. Barbara Boxer

Sen. Debbie Stabenow

However, we are asking EVERY member whether they can commit to

support passing the Clean Energy Corps into law this year. This is an

appropriate question for potential champions as well as folks who are on the

fence. We'll pass information about how members of Congress responded to

our meetings to our campaigners and the Green for All campaigners in

Washington so they can best evaluate which Senators & Reps to follow up

with.



Clean Energy Corp 1 page Summary

Executive summary (4 pages):


Full report (40 pages):

http://pol.moveon.org/congressmeeting/CEC_full.pdf

The Clean Energy Corps (CEC) is a combined service, training, and job

creation effort to combat global warming, grow local and regional economies

and demonstrate the equity and employment promise of the clean energy

economy. Download the Executive Summary of Clean Energy Corps: Jobs,

Service, and Equal Opportunity in America’s Clean Energy Economy, a white

paper that explains why the CEC is needed and how it would work.

Clean Energy Corps: Jobs, Service, and Equal Opportunity in America’s

Clean Energy Economy

America is suffering through an economic recession, rising energy

prices and energy insecurity, job losses, and an increasing scarcity of hope

and common purpose. Americans are looking for solutions on climate,

energy and the economy.




To address these intersecting challenges, Green For All and its partners

propose a Clean Energy Corps in a new white paper, Clean Energy Corps:

Jobs, Service, and Equal Opportunity in America's Clean Energy Economy.

The CEC would be a combined service, training, and job creation effort to

combat global warming, grow local and regional economies and demonstrate

the equity and employment promise of the clean energy economy. The CEC

would:

* Directly engage millions of Americans in diverse service, service-

learning, and volunteer work related to climate protection;

* Work with employers, unions, educators, and community

organizations to put more Americans, particularly the low-income and

unemployed, on green-collar career pathways — providing them the training,

credentials, work experience, job placement, and other essential elements

for good and secure jobs in the clean energy economy;




* Preserve and enlarge green public spaces, strengthen community

defenses against climate disruption, and enlist America’s public lands in the

fight against climate change by planting trees and restoring wetlands and

rivers; and

* Launch a national effort to comprehensively apply cost-effective

energy efficiency measures to our nation’s building stock. This effort will

generate demand for hundreds of thousands of jobs, and significantly reduce

our national energy costs and contribution to global warming. It will also

more than pay for itself through on-bill recovery of a portion of the energy

savings achieved.



PRESS RELEASE TEMPLATE

MoveOn.org Political Action

PRESS RELEASE FOR: CONTACT:

February [DATE], 2009 [YOUR NAME],

[CELL PHONE #]

Local Residents to Meet with [Sen./Rep. NAME], Urge Creation

of Green Jobs

MoveOn.org Members Hold Meeting to Share Priorities, Call for

a ‘Clean Energy Corps’

On [DATE], MoveOn.org members from [STATE/CONGRESSIONAL

DISTRICT] will meet with [Rep./Sen. NAME] at [his/her] office in TOWN, to

share their priorities for the year and call for bold leadership from Congress

to build a “green economy” – putting Americans back to work and beginning

the shift to clean, renewable sources of energy.




The local group is one of dozens holding meetings at congressional

offices across the country over the Presidents’ Day Recess, focused

specifically on a proposal to create a “Clean Energy Corps” -- a combined

service, training, and job creation effort.

“We’re excited to be meeting with [Rep./Sen. NAME], on behalf of

thousands of MoveOnmembers in [STATE/CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT],” said

[NAME], a MoveOn.org member from [Town]. “As the economy continues to

worsen and the threat of global climate change grows more serious, we’re

hoping [Rep./Sen. NAME] will help lead the way to a greener and more

prosperous future.”

[ADD A PERSONAL QUOTE ABOUT THE IMPACT OF THE ECONOMIC

DOWNTURN FROM A MEMBER OF YOUR MOVEON COUNCIL HERE. IF YOU

DON’T HAVE ONE, JUST DELETE.]

MoveOn members participating in the meeting are available for

interviews; please contact [NAME] at [PHONE #].




For more information on the proposal to create a Clean Energy Corps,

please download “Clean Energy Corps: Jobs, Service, and Equal Opportunity

in America’s Clean Energy Economy,” a white paper available at

http://www.greenforall.org/what-we-do/working-with-

washington/cec_report

MoveOn.org Political Action is a political action committee powered by

5 million progressive Americans. We believe in the power of small donors

and grassroots action to elect progressive leaders to office and to advance a

progressive agenda. We do not accept any donations over $5,000, and the

average donation to MoveOn.org Political Action is under $100.

###

http://www.greenforall.org/what-we-do/working-with-washington/cec_report










“Drop off” Summary Checklist – Wed Feb 18

Drop-off Materials Checklist —

Letter to Schumer

Photo-petition

Copy of the 4 page executive summary


*******








Lead Presenter

Find and introduce yourself to staff member; and ask if they

could spare 10-15 minutes discussing our priorities in 2009 – and our plan

towin change in congress. Request a meeting between now and 2/27




Pitch Person – This person presents the Policy Proposal — please include a copy of

this document for Schumer to read:

http://pol.moveon.org/congressmeeting/CEC_execsum.pdf )

Meeting scribe — Important! Please take note of staff person’s response. We will

need to pass along info about how members of Congress responded during these meetings

to our campaigners and the Green for All campaigners in Washington so they can best

evaluate which Senators & Reps to follow up with.

Media Persons

Take Photos; Write articles; Send out Press Releases to local media outlets (see

Press Release Template in this doc)












2009-02-16

Documents

Schumer Drop-Off/Meeting Packet