From where we sit there are a few really good Members of the House and Senate who are ready and willing to compete. However, the majority of Republicans appear to have their heads down and seem to be in shock over the results of the election one year ago. They have not adjusted to being in the Minority in Congress.
They're going to have a hard time getting elected next year if their constituents don't see them standing up for core beliefs.
We believe that eminent domain, takings, Federal land acquisition, access to Federal land, conversion of private land into government ownership, massive Federal land expansion, huge new land set-asides like the National Landscape and Conservation System, large increases in red tape and Federal regulations and the attack on rural America are issues a lot of Republicans care about.
The Natural Resources Committee is just one example. Wednesday, November 7th the Natural Resources Committee held a mark-up (vote) on HR 3998, affecting one of the largest amounts of private land in any bill ever.
This is supposedly just a study bill but in total will ultimately be hugely expensive, well over $10 billion in the final analysis. It covers over a dozen states and threatens the land of several hundred thousand landowners. 159,000 land owners in the Rim of the Valley National Park in California alone. Heaven knows how many landowners will lose in the proposed Mississippi River Trail National Park that runs from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. Don't buy the word trail. This is huge.
To our surprise, most Republicans on the Natural Resources Committee failed to even show up, much less vote. Even some members with proposed land grab areas or new parks in their districts that are in the bill failed to show up.
The mark-up was Web-cast so it was there for everyone to see. The Republicans for the most part are not showing up to protect private property, rural communities and access to Federal land.
I'm not trying to disparage all the Republicans on the Natural Resources Committee because some are doing great, mixing it up and fighting it out. The staffs of many Members are trying hard.
But there are Members and staffs who are simply not trying to compete.
It is very hard to get the grassroots going if they feel their Member of Congress either doesn't care about the issues or has given up and feels that he or she cannot compete.
As someone who began his career in the 70's when the late Rep. Phil Burton (D-CA) really ran things on the Committee and the Democrats were in the majority, competing from a Minority position seems normal. It was great when the Republicans took control but we and our allies won lots of battles when the Republicans were in the Minority.
-----We view the process like a card game. Every two years the voters deal out the cards. They elect whom they are going to elect for local and national reasons.
-----Our job is to play with the cards we're dealt and protect our issues and our members the best we can. And we have to get our members and allies to accept who is in the Majority and who is not and play our cards as successfully as possible. Teamwork and enthusiasm are great equalizers when dealing with Congress. And they are fun.
There seems to be a malaise (I hate to use that Jimmy Carter phrase) in the grassroots that to some degree may be reflected in their Members of Congress. Some might call it burn out. Whatever it is, our grassroots must light it up and our Members of Congress must show up and compete.
Republicans have to accept that they are not in the majority any more and they need to get back to competing like they did in the 70's and 80's when they were also in the Minority. Some of us are old enough to remember those days as well as the strategies and tactics that were used. Competing was fun. It was a team game with our Members of Congress and the grassroots.
-----So let's get up off our butts and compete. That goes for the grassroots as well as Congress.
-----We are giving fair notice.
-----American Land Rights is going to begin sending reports on votes in Committee and on the House and Senate floors when Members of Congress fail to show up for important votes and hearings.
We want all Members of Congress to get the credit they deserve, both positive and negative.
It is our understanding that the League of Private Property Voters is going to begin issuing press releases and reports also on attendance at votes and hearings.
So it is up to each Member of Congress and their staff as to whether they are going to get their heads up and get out there and compete in this huge competition of ideas. This is a competition of ideas in Congress and the grassroots, but if one side fails to take the field, there's not much competition.
Landowners, rights owners and Federal land access advocates have a huge amount at stake. The present Majority in the Congress is taking advantage of the burn out in both the grassroots and Congress on the Republican side to attempt to pass a load of incredibly bad bills and grabbing land on a scale not seen since the 70's and the days of Philip Burton.
If we all fail to compete, then we deserve the losses. If we compete, there will be less losses and some wins. And perhaps better elections ahead. And even more wins.
By competing people will become energized. Competition is fun. The voters will be energized. More grassroots groups will spring up. Prospects for the next election will be improved if people believe their Members of Congress are actually doing something to fight for their rights and property, even if they lose.
Wining and losing are important, but it is the competing that is the core issue.
So let's get with it.
-----Action Items:
-----1. Call and write your Congressman and tell him you want him to help protect your property and rights and oppose this huge omnibus land grab bill, HR 3998. Tell him you are willing to help by writing letters, short letters to the editor and getting your friends and neighbors involved. Get to know the staff person who handles issues you care about for your Congressman.
-----Believe me, Teddy Roosevelt would not have gone up San Juan Hill if he looked around and he was the only guy on the mountain. Your Congressman needs to know you will help and support him if he fights for you.
Write any Congressman at: Honorable __________, US House of Representatives, Washington, DC 20515.
Write any Senator at: Honorable ________, US Senate, Washington, DC 20510. E-mail is better than the Post Office. Just call your Congressman to get an e-mail address and then save it for future use. Fax is good too.
-----2. There are lots of grassroots groups across the country that need your support. Both local and national. Join one or two or more. As Jesse Unruh of California once said, money is the mother's milk of politics. If you don't compete, you cannot win. And if you don't empower people who are willing to fight who are willing to fight, then you deprive them of the opportunity to fight and win with you and for you.
-----3. When you are asked to send a letter or a Testimony Questionnaire or something else to follow-up with Congress, please do it. Help compete. Do your part. Take a few minutes, fill out the questionnaire and send it to Congress. Or call and write your Congressman when asked.
-----4. Take our materials and forward them to your friends and business associates. Do the same with information sent by other grassroots groups. Lets rise up and compete in Congress. Maybe we can take Congress back over time.
-----5. Make hard copies of our material and those of other groups and hand them out to others. It only takes a small amount of effort to compete.
-----6. Publicize horror stories, condemnations and abuse by Federal and other agencies. You can find lots of examples by going to our website at www.landrights.org. Look for my testimony on the National Trails Act or CARA.
Tell us and others about people being evicted from their homes by the Feds, farms that burn due to excessive Endangered Species Regulations, Wetlands land grabs by the Corps of Engineers and so much more. Pass these stories on to us and others and the press so we can let the public in the country know their rights are being stolen day by day.
-----7. Network with American Land Rights and other groups. Send us the names and addresses as well as the phone and e-mail contact information for people in your area.
-----8. Your Congressman will likely be coming home for the Thanksgiving recess. Congress is taking two weeks off, beginning this weekend. You need to call his or her office and find out where any public meetings will be taking place in the district.
Go to the local meeting and ask your Congressman to commit to fight the bills we've talked about in this e-mail. Ask him or her to commit to showing up for mark-ups, floor votes and hearings. You cannot compete if you are not there.
-----There are rules in Congress in both the House and Senate that protect the Minority from an overarching Majority. But they are impossible to use if your Congressman fails to show up or you fail to get involved and support him or give him a piece of your mind when that is appropriate. Your Congressman wants to know what you think, whether he or she agrees or not.
You can compete and you can help us and our allies compete. Let's cut out the whining about what is wrong, or the last election, and get back to competing and making a difference. Make it fun. It is fun. You must learn to make it fun and we can help you.
The greens have won most of their successes in small, incremental steps. You are going to have to do the same to be successful.
Don't worry about winning everything in one battle or taking everything back at one time. Think of each day, each hearing, each mark-up and each vote as small steps toward ultimate victory.
Give your financial support to at least one grassroots group and several if you can. Especially support your local grassroots group.
Don't have a local grassroots group? Start one. ALRA can help you. We can give you materials, ideas and information to help you be effective in Congress. So can other grassroots groups. But you must be on the playing field. You must compete. Just call and ask for help. We'll get you hooked up with experienced people in your area.
American Land Rights is only as successful as the local, regional and national grassroots groups we work with are competitive. We help win lots of battles networking with other groups from around the country.
Your ability to compete is in your mind. You must make a mental decision that you are going to participate in the process and help save private property and access to Federal lands from those who seek to take it.
You and your children have a lot at stake. At the moment your future is being stolen by an out of control Majority in Congress. It is up to you to stand up and say enough and begin to do something about it.
You cannot just sit by and hope some other guy is going to do something. Otherwise, you're going to end up with less property, more regulations and a lot higher taxes as well as less access to Federal land.
The Natural Legacy Study Act (HR 3998) passed the Resources Committee on November 7th. It will come before the full House in the not too distant future. It is a giant land grab affecting private property in dozens of states and hundreds of communities.
HR 2421, the Clean Water Restoration Act (wetlands) will have another hearing in December and move toward a vote. HR 2421 affects nearly every landowner in America. It will give the Corps of Engineers control over most farms and ranches as well as local private land.
These are just two examples of bills that you can jump in to and fight no matter where you live or what you do. They will have a terribly damaging affect on all private property everywhere.
Your Congressman needs to know you care about them and want to defeat them. You need to call your Congressman at (202) 225-3121 and get a commitment that he or she will participate in hearings and mark-ups (votes) and floor votes on HR 3998 and HR 2421.
These two bills give you a place to start to really compete and get your Congressman to compete. Make a difference for private property and access to Federal land now.
The train is leaving the station. Are you going to be on it?
Chuck Cushman
American Land Rights Association
(360) 687-3087
ccushman@pacifier.com