A bunch of Kansans are calling our do-nothing Senator Roberts to task. As chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, he let us down by defending the President when he ought to be defending us.
Thoughts from Kansas has been getting current and former Kansans to write to their local papers, telling them what their concerns are and why they want their Senator to hold hearings on warrantless wiretapping. Other Kansas bloggers from across the political spectrum are joining in, and
bigger bloggers have been pushing us along.
Today's SurveyUSA poll gives me great hope. Even as the state with the 8th highest number of people who think the program is legal, that's only 38%, and moderate Kansans are evenly split over it. A quarter of Kansas are not clear on the program's legality, which means they are ready to listen to letters to the editor.
Read the extended entry for more on how to help.
The poll reveals that Americans in general don't think this program is legal. Even the program's defenders ought to be worried by those numbers, and ought to be calling for hearings to shore up the program's support. It's opponents can obviously be thrilled that after two months of push-back, so few people have been convinced.
Any Kansans out there should send a letter to their local paper (more on that here). If you aren't from Kansas but you want to help, think long and hard about what connection you and your family might have to Kansas. If we apply enough pressure in Kansas right now, we can change the dynamic on hearings, and on whatever comes after them.
Our other Senator, Senator Brownback, is talking about revising FISA, and he too needs to hear from Kansans and Americans what our concerns are. This is a great opportunity for the netroots to put all the discussion we've generated about the warrantless wiretapping to good use.
Short, personal letters that will reach the nearly 30% of moderate Kansans who aren't clear on the programs' legality would be a big help.