Today’s Downsizer Dispatch . . .
Quote of the Day:
“Power gradually extirpates from the mind every humane and gentle virtue”
— Edmund Burke
Subject: Trying to meet our recruitment goal
We want to try something different today. We usually recruit new supporters as a result of current Downsizers forwarding these emails to others. Today we want to experiment with having you specifically ask people you know to join.
In January we recruited 1,114 new Downsizers. Last month we recruited 1,160. This was one of our best two-month period ever. But it can be hard to maintain that kind of pace. So we’ve only recruited 497 new Downsizers so far this month. We’d need another 664 new recruits over the next 7 days to exceed last month’s result.
Can we do that?
It might seem difficult, until you consider that it would only take 3 new recruits per every 100 subscribers to this list. It’s entirely possible that we might recruit more people faster if you specifically asked others to join. So let’s give it a try and see what happens.
Do you have friends who think the federal government is way too big, and needs to be downsized? Send them an email something like the following . . .
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I’m writing to ask you to join one my favorite organizations, DownsizeDC.org. Membership is free. All you have to do is register to use their quick-and-easy system for sending messages to Congress. Doing this will bring you three benefits . . .
- You’ll be able to issue instructions to Congress with just a few mouse clicks and keyboard strokes
- You’ll get a free subscription to the Downsizer-Dispatch, an excellent email newsletter that will keep you informed of activities in Congress
- You’ll be able to join me in pressuring Congress to pass important Downsize DC proposals such as the “Read the Bills Act,” the “One Subject at a Time Act,” and the “Write the Laws Act”
Many people sing the virtues of voting on election day, but the candidates we elect rarely give us what we want. Perhaps that’s because we rarely tell them what we want. The members of DownsizeDC.org, are trying to change that, and I’m proud to be a part of that effort.
DC Downsizers want Congress and the President to obey the Constitution. Were the politicians to do that there would be a lot less looting of the taxpayers by special interests. We would have a balanced budget, lower taxes, and a focused, more competent government. But we’re never going to achieve this result unless we ask the politicians to give it to us. You can be a part of this solution by joining DownsizeDC.org.
Of course, the result we’re asking for won’t be achieved overnight. We need a large number of DC Downsizers pressuring Congress to make it happen. This is where you come in. But there are also steps we can take along the way to make it more likely that Congress will behave responsibly. For instance . . .
We could convince Congress to pass Downsize DC’s “One Subject at a Time Act.” This would prevent the Congressional leadership from passing unpopular laws by combining them with completely unrelated measures that lower-ranking members of Congress are afraid to vote against. This one simple change would go a long way toward restoring a responsible, representative, and Constitutional government. But we aren’t going to get this reform unless we ask for it. That’s why I’d like to ask you to do the following . . .
- Go to this web page: http://action.downsizedc.org/wyc.php?cid=83
- Read the short explanation of the “One Subject at a Time Act”
- Fill out the form to send a message to Congress in support of the “One Subject at a Time Act”
Once you’ve done this you’ll be a member of DownsizeDC.org. Maybe you won’t agree with all the things Downsize DC wants to do, but when you receive a Downsizer Dispatch promoting an issue where you do agree, it will be very easy to contact Congress and tell your elected representatives what you want.
It could make a huge difference. I’ll be sending my own message to Congress in support of the “One Subject at a Time Act” just as soon as I finish sending this message to you. I hope you’ll decide to join me.
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Once you’ve sent this message, or something like it, to your friends, please also send a message to Congress in support of the “One Subject at a Time Act.” Doing so will help meet the “messages to Congress” goal for March. You can send your message here.
Please also consider making a contribution to help make budget for March. Only $640 is still left to raise. You can contribute here.
Thank you for being a part of the growing Downsize DC Army.
Jim Babka
President
DownsizeDC.org, Inc.