Friends Committee on National Legislation has been actively developing “Advocacy Teams” across the United States. They offer training regarding best practices to employ when visiting with members of Congress or their staff. And each year FCNL focuses on a single issue; this year it is improving US relations with North Korea.
Advocacy Team members are thoughtfully and professionally trained, and are supported throughout the process of developing our own initiatives.
I had never been to a Congressional office before our five-member FCNL DelCo (PA) Advocacy Team met with representatives of Senator Patrick Toomey’s office on Friday, March 9th, 2018. What follows is, first, our strategic plan for the session and, then, my response to it.
We met with the following concerns:
- Promoting diplomacy and peace-oriented decisions in the Korean Peninsula
- Reaffirming Congress’s constitutional authority over all non-emergency kinetic military action.
We requested that:
- Senator Toomey use his leverage with the Senate leadership and with President Trump to prevent military action, and to enter into diplomatic negotiations with North Korea;
- Senator Toomey co-sponsor Chris Murphy’s reaffirmation resolution S. 2047, to demonstrate that this is a bi-partisan issue; and
- Senator Toomey go on record publicly reasserting Congress’s constitutional authority and obligation to determine when, where, and if the USA uses military force.
As a result of the meeting, and as a member of the team, I did feel acknowledged and heard. There is no way that any one person’s words are guaranteed to create spontaneous change, but it was rewarding to know that the staff people listened carefully, took notes, and indicated they will condense our words and send the basic message on its way to Senator Toomey.
In addition to me, our Team members were:
- Jennifer Beer, part-time Wharton faculty, Lansdowne resident, attender Lansdowne Friends Meeting
- Norm Janes, retired lawyer, Drexel Hill resident, member Lansdowne Friends Meeting
- Guinevere Janes, retail clerk, Media resident, member Providence Friends Meeting
- Art Tung, Presbyterian pastor, Upper Darby resident
Submitted by: Carolyn Houghton, retired, member Lansdowne Friends Meeting
