Are You Tired of Not Getting What You Want from Government?

By paulgibson51 on March 8, 2018 • ( 0 )

I thought you might be, so today we are providing a pretty short post with one goal, one action. Lately I’ve been hammering about how democracy is not working for us. This is a chance to seize the wheel. But we need you on this one. Read on.

SpeakUp New Mexico! In 2019, Let’s Make Good Bills Good Laws

Even if you have already taken the survey, please read on, as we have one more thing to ask of you.

A year ago, Retake Our Democracy’s Roundhouse Advocacy Team began calling progressive advocacy groups like Common Cause, 350.org, Planned Parenthood, ACLU and NM Voices for Children. We made lots of calls and we learned a good deal about how the Roundhouse really operates. We also identified 29 very good bills in 13 issue areas and created SpeakUp, NM!, an online survey that provides YOU with an opportunity

Here’s your chance to tell your legislators what’s important to you. Each of these very good bills that died in the Roundhouse in 2017 and will likely be introduced again in 2019. We need as many New Mexicans as possible to take the online survey and rate each bill on how important it is to them. With polling results from throughout the state we will be able to lobby more effectively to ensure these good bills become law. The survey also asks for your House and Senate District (with names & district #s provided) and we ask if the person completing the survey would like to be kept informed on the bills, and/or would like to be involved in what we are calling a statewide Rapid Response Network that will lobby with their legislators a few times a year and then intensively during session. Amazingly over 35% of those completing the survey want to be involved in the RRN and almost 90% want to be kept informed. This could potentially grow into a HUGE force by January…..if you help. If you want to read more about the 2018-2019 Election and Legislative Strategy, look to the bottom of this post. But first:

If you have not taken the survey yet, please do so right now. It only takes 10 minutes. Click here to complete the survey….but then please come back, as….

If you have taken the survey, we have a very important task for you. Almost 800 people have completed surveys so far, but in most Districts, we have only a handful of folks completing the survey. If we want to move legislators, we need to have responses from every District in the State. Lot’s of them. We wanted to make this as easy as possible, so we created language below with a link to the survey and we are asking you to copy and paste this into your FB page and (and this will yield far better results), to sit at your computer and think of as many friends and family members as you can and copy and paste the language below into an email and send it to 10, 20, 50, however many people you may have on some pre-existing list OR creating a list with an eye toward including people in ABQ, Taos, Las Cruces, Silver City, Gallup, Farmington, and even Santa Fe. See below for suggested language.

Roundhouse Advocacy Team (RAT PACK). If you would like to get involved with this effort, the RAT PACK meets the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month from 4:30-6:30 at New Energy Economy, 343 E. Alameda. We have lots to do to develop our Rapid Response Network and to develop materials that support our bills. Much of this work can be done from home and doesn’t require attending any meetings, but it is a great group of folks. If you are interested, please write to me at: paul@retakeourdemocracy.org. Suggested language below:

Hello Friends,

I am a supporter of Retake Our Democracy, a progressive advocacy group in Santa Fe that is building a statewide base to lobby in the Roundhouse in 2019. They have a tremendous idea that I’d like you consider. Your part in this will take you 10 minutes.

Retake’s Roundhouse Advocacy Team has spent a year working with progressive advocacy groups like Common Cause, 350.org, Planned Parenthood, ACLU and NM Voices for Children. They made lots of calls and learned a good deal about how the Roundhouse really operates. They also identified 29 very good bills in 13 issue areas and created SpeakUp, NM!, an online survey that provides YOU with an opportunity to tell your legislators what you want from them. All of these bills died in the 2017 Roundhouse and will be re-introduced in 2019. In just 10 minutes you can help make sure these good bills become good laws.

As you complete the survey, you will be asked how much you support each bill. You will also be asked to provide your NM State Senate and House Districts so your legislators will hear your views. Results of the survey will be shared with legislators, used to vet 2018 candidates, and help focus advocacy in the 2019 Roundhouse session. You will also have an opportunity to be involved in what Retake is calling a Rapid Response Network. It is a tremendous idea, as members will get alerts on bills they care about and then be able to contact their legislators when these bills go to their committee (where often bills die) or when a bill gets to the floor for a vote. It is a great way to push for what you want and Retake makes it very easy.

So, please click here to take the survey. It takes just 10 minutes. We need thousands of voices from across the state. And shoot me a note to let me know what you think of the survey. I’d also suggest subscribing to the blog that Retake sends out. It is an excellent way to keep up on local, State and National issues. You sign up for the blog by clicking the blue follow button on their home page. retakeourdemocracy.org.

Thanks a bunch, [your name]

In solidarity,

Paul & Roxanne