On August 14th, I met with Speaker Pelosi's Deputy District Director here in San Francisco. I detailed that meeting here (light-hearted, fashion version), here (lengthy, detailed version), and here (somewhat less-lengthy, abridged version).
As fortune would have it, I have time off from school in the last two weeks of September. I'm going to try to schedule a trip to D.C. in that time in order to participate in the Iraq Moratorium in D.C. on the 21st. I am also going to take the opportunity to try to schedule a follow-up appointment with Pelosi's office.
Below the fold, please help me to edit and refine my meeting request. See the final draft here.
I would like to send the request out Monday, so that gives me the weekend for refining. Your comments and thoughts are both requested and appreciated. For more context, it may be helpful if you review at least the abridged version of my original meeting cited above, and perhaps the original meeting request I sent for my August 14th meeting. This is a first draft so if/as appropriate, I'll update this diary so people can see edits in progress.
Paragraph 1: Who I am
My name is [forbodyandmind] and I am a constituent of Speaker Pelosi's in San Francsico. I am planning a trip to Washington D.C between September 17th and September 28th, and would like to schedule an appointment to meet the Speaker.
Paragraph 2: General Intention
In part, I want to follow up on a meeting I had with Melanie [...] here in San Francisco on August 14th. I know the Speaker's schedule will be very busy with the September legislative schedule, but I would hope to have at least time for a photo with the Speaker. For the substance of the meeting, I would be content to meet with a member of the Speaker's staff, assuming Speaker Pelosi is not available for more than the time available for a photo.
Paragraph 3: Meeting Substance - Oversight
My primary concern is the status of oversight hearings and impeachment issues. Specifically, I would like to discuss the status of oversight with regard to the US Attorneys firing scandal, the status of contempt/inherent contempt proceedings against Karl Rove, Joshua Bolten, and Harriet Miers. I am also concerned about the administration's interpretation of and responsiveness to the Freedom of Information Act. I would like to discuss congressional oversight of the administration with regard to FISA and warrantless wiretapping as well as with regard to achieving a rapid yet responsible full withdrawal of troops from Iraq.
[Update] Proposed revision
... I would like to discuss congressional oversight of the administration with regard to FISA and warrantless wiretapping as well as with regard to achieving a rapid yet responsible full withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Finally, I am also very disturbed by the unitary executive theory that the administration has been operating under, even to the extent of citing the "Unitary Executive" in numerous signing statements. In my opinion, this has had profound negative consequences for the Constitutional separation of powers and legitimate congressional oversight.
Emphasis added only to highlight the proposed change - it will be omitted in the version sent to Speaker Pelosi's scheduler.
Paragraph 4: Meeting Substance - Impeachment
With regard to impeachment issues, I will be upfront in saying I am an impeachment advocate. This was the bulk of my meeting with Melanie. The above issues will be coloring my perspective on impeachment. I do not merely want to argue the position of whether President Bush should or should not be impeached. Instead, I would like to discuss the status of the two impeachment resolutions currently before the Judiciary Committee, H. Res. 333 and H. Res. 589. I would like to weigh various impeachment scenarios for Attorney General Gonzales, Vice President Cheney, or President Bush versus real progress on the Democratic legislative agenda. I will also be coming from the perspective that lack of substance and accountability out of the existing oversight hearings is alienating the American public with potential electoral consequences, and not just with liberal and progressive activists.
[update] Opinions on the comparison of proposed revision? up front vs upfront vs forthright in the sentence "With regard to impeachment issues, I will be upfront in saying I am an impeachment advocate."
[update 2] The following update was inspired from comments below by YetiMonk and One Pissed Off Liberal. What do you think? Does it make paragraph 4 too long, or upset the rhythm of the paragraph?
With regard to impeachment issues, I will be upfront in saying I am an impeachment advocate. This was the bulk of my meeting with Melanie. Melanie pointed out, and I appreciate, that Speaker Pelosi has been quoted in the media as saying that if she were not Speaker, she might be advocating for impeachment herself. With this in mind, I am curious how Democratic caucus views are moving, and how many caucus members are tempering their own positions based on the Speaker's official position vs her unofficial feelings. The above oversight issues are the primary issues coloring my perspective on impeachment. I do not merely want to argue the position of whether President Bush should or should not be impeached. ...
In my original meeting request, I did not explicitly bring up impeachment. When the actual meeting took place, that was the bulk of the meeting. Given that I am presenting this as a follow up meeting, I figure it is best to be up front with my intentions.
Paragraph 5: Time
I would like to spend about half the time on each specific topic area, oversight and impeachment, anticipating about 10-15 minutes each. However, if the Speaker's staff feel that either more time is needed and available or that the demands on the Speaker's staff are too high, I can be flexible to Speaker Pelosi's needs.
My hope is to have a meeting comparable to what I was able to have with Melanie during the recess. However, with Congress back in session and Iraq high on the agenda, I recognize that the Speaker's staff might be preoccupied with matters more pressing than meeting one constituent who has already had one opportunity to meet with a member of the Speaker's staff.
Paragraph 6: Close - Who's Attending
At present, I believe I will be alone and representing only myself as a constituent. If other San Francisco constituents are available to join me, I will let you know by September 10th. Let me know if you will need name and address information for other potential attendees.
Respectfully,
[forbodyandmind]
[my address]
My one-on-one meeting with Melanie went pretty well, so I am comfortable going solo again. In addition, I wasn't able to pull together anyone to go with me. This time around, I'm planning a little further out, so there is more of a chance for people to sign on. Perhaps having a group would be more likely to get a meeting scheduled, especially if some are representing a prominent organization or two.
[Update 3] Final Draft
My name is [forbodyandmind] and I am a constituent of Speaker Pelosi's in San Francsico. I am planning a trip to Washington D.C between September 17th and September 28th, and would like to schedule an appointment to meet the Speaker.
In part, I want to follow up on a meeting I had with Melanie [...] here in San Francisco on August 14th. I know the Speaker's schedule will be very busy with the September legislative schedule, but I would hope to have at least time for a photo with the Speaker. For the substance of the meeting, I would be content to meet with a member of the Speaker's staff, assuming Speaker Pelosi is not available for more than the time available for a photo.
My primary concern is the status of oversight hearings and impeachment issues. Specifically, I would like to discuss the status of oversight with regard to the US Attorneys firing scandal, the status of contempt/inherent contempt proceedings against Karl Rove, Joshua Bolten, and Harriet Miers. I am also concerned about the administration's interpretation of and responsiveness to the Freedom of Information Act. I would like to discuss congressional oversight of the administration with regard to FISA and warrantless wiretapping as well as with regard to achieving a rapid yet responsible full withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Finally, I am also very disturbed by the unitary executive theory that the administration has been operating under, even to the extent of citing the "Unitary Executive" in numerous signing statements. In my opinion, this has profound negative consequences for the Constitutional separation of powers and legitimate congressional oversight.
With regard to impeachment issues, I will be up front in saying I am an impeachment advocate. This was the bulk of my meeting with Melanie. Melanie pointed out, and I appreciate, that Speaker Pelosi has been quoted in the media as saying that if she were not speaker, she might be advocating for impeachment herself. With this in mind, I am curious how Democratic caucus views are moving, and how many caucus members are tempering their own positions based on the Speaker's official position vs her unofficial feelings. I do not merely want to argue the position of whether President Bush should or should not be impeached. Instead, I would like to discuss the status of the two impeachment resolutions currently before the Judiciary Committee, H. Res. 333 and H. Res. 589. I would like to weigh various impeachment scenarios for Attorney General Gonzales, Vice President Cheney, or President Bush versus real progress on the Democratic legislative agenda. While Attorney General Gonzales' resignation means a shift in urgency and emphasis, there are still arguments for his impeachment even once a new Attorney General is in place. Oversight issues are primary in coloring my perspective on impeachment, which includes the perspective that the lack of substance and accountability out of the existing oversight hearings is alienating the American public with potential electoral consequences, and not just with liberal and progressive activists.
I would like to spend about half the time on each specific topic area, oversight and impeachment, anticipating about 10-15 minutes each. However, if the Speaker's staff feel that either more time is needed and available or that the demands on the Speaker's staff are too high, I can be flexible to Speaker Pelosi's needs.
At present, I believe I will be alone and representing only myself as a constituent. If other San Francisco constituents are available to join me, I will let you know by September 10th. Let me know if you will need name and address information for other potential attendees.
Respectfully,
[forbodyandmind]
[my address]