Do you know how we got 16 sponsors for the One Subject at a Time Act? Retweet
The “One Subject at a Time Act (OSTA)” currently has 16 total sponsors in the House (and it’s also introduced in the Senate). Each one became a co-sponsor by one of two means…
- A constituent’s request
- A Congressional colleague’s request (sponsor Mia Love is really pushing this bill)
We’ll use both methods to add another 202 co-sponsors — for a total of 218. That would give us a Congressional majority. Why should 202 more members of Congress support our bill? The answer is powerful…
Because it will benefit them!
Newer, lower-ranked members of Congress hate voting for packages of unrelated measures. Only the leadership likes the current system, which brings us to the second importance of having 218+ co-sponsors.
That would be enough for a “discharge petition.”
With a discharge petition, we could sidestep the leadership and the committee system and go straight to a vote. We wouldn’t have to worry about the power-brokers corrupting our bill.
This strategy would also help us in the Senate!
As we recruit the support of House members, state-by-state, some of those delegations can reach out and share OSTA with the Senators from their states. They can tell these politicians how much interest these bills attract from wonderful people like you!
Piling up co-sponsors would also help us pass the “Read the Bills Act (RTBA).”
The idea of reading thousand page omnibus bills is intimidating. It’s a major barrier to passing RTBA. Most Congressional offices cannot imagine a time when bills would be shorter. Passing OSTA would remove that barrier. OSTA shortens bills! And that would make it easier to attract co-sponsors for Read the Bills.
So we want to do a lot more of what has worked so far…
- We need more constituents asking their reps to cosponsor OSTA
- We need to encourage existing co-sponsors to ask their colleagues to join them
We want to focus on this effort like a laser, and we want to persuade you to do likewise. Can you do the two following things…
- Commit in your own mind to open our email messages each day
- Commit to do the super easy action item each message contains (if at all possible)
That’s it! Just open the message each day and do the super easy action item (if you possibly can). Can you make that commitment RIGHT NOW?
Here’s how: Click feedback@downsizedc.org to send us an email. Your message will be brought to my attention. Tell me: If you’re ready, WILLING, and able to…
- Make phone calls to Congress about OSTA
- Assist our OSTA efforts on the following social media platforms (such as Facebook and Twitter)
- Send regular, repeated letters about OSTA to Congress
- Start or increase your monthly pledge, which you can do on our secure web form
- Share OSTA messages with a targeted groups of 2 – 10 friends
- Visit a congressional office as part of a delegation
Send me the numbers, the descriptions, or both if that’s what you’re willing to do. I look forward to hearing from you!
Thank you, in advance, for your commitment to being an ACTIVE DC Downsizer.
Jim Babka
President
Downsize DC