From: Roy Beck, President, NumbersUSA
Date: Thursday 3NOV05 2:30 a.m. EST


Make some more calls to influence Byrd vote this aft ... biggest immigration roll call in 9 years

"Today is the first time I've had a chance to make a call to Congress. Your phone action page is very easy and I will be using it more. THANKS GUYS!"
............Mary Stevenson, McKinney, TX

ARE WE GOING TO CONCEDE DEFEAT -- OR ARE WE GOING TO FIGHT A FEW MORE HOURS TO CHANGE THE OUTCOME? 350,000 EXTRA IMMIGRANTS A YEAR -- OR NOT?

We need hundreds more of you to make that first phone call like Mary did yesterday. Click here to get phone numbers of your Senators and talking points.

"The lady that answered the phone was very polite. It was easy and I felt like I did a small part in helping our cause. Thank you for your suggestions in placing my call."
............Toni Byers, Union Gap, WA


1. Call your Senators about their Immigration Grade Cards and how this vote will affect their grades


Look up your Senators' grade cards here:
www.CongressGrades.com

Be looking at the Grade Card while you talk to the staffer and refer to the grades the Senator currently has.

Make the point that the Budget Reconciliation bill with its increase of more than 3 million immigrants per decade will dramatically move a Senator's grade depending on which way he/she votes.

If they vote against the Byrd Amendment and in favor of the 350,000-a-year increase, their grade will plummet so badly that it will be difficult to ever recover.


2. Those of you who live in small-population states are REALLY important today


We just don't have that many members in states like the Dakotas, Rhode Island, Idaho, Montana, Vermont, Maine and Wyoming.

We need every one of you who live in those states to pick up the phone right now. These Senators tend to be a little less beholden to big corporate donors and, thus, a little more open to what voters want. You have a chance to persuade them to vote for the Byrd Amendment.


3. The vote count in the Senate on the Byrd Amendment right now indicates that we and the amendment will lose overwhelmingly later today.


But we also have plenty of indications that many Senators and their staffs are starting to get nervous about casting their vote against Byrd and in favor of 350,000 extra permanent foreign workers EACH YEAR.

Your phone calls and faxes are shaking them up some.

A constant ringing of the phones in the DC office and in the home state offices has a chance of switching some votes. The less we lose by in the Senate, the better chance the House will have of beating back this 350,000 a year increase in the joint Conference Committee.


4. Immigration Lawyers have a phone campaign to defeat us


The American Immigration Lawyers Association and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Microsoft have phone campaigns and direct lobbying to persuade Senators to stick with the global corporate plan to drive American wages down toward global averages.

But they have to buy their influence.

What they don't have is the massive numbers that the American public has. Let's hand them a defeat.


5. What you all reported to us about what you found yesterday when you made your calls


More than 500 of you filled in the feedback forms on the Phone Action page. Thanks so much. Jeremy on our staff compiled all that came in and provided these observations and quotes:

* Lots of harried staffers rushing to get off the phone.

* Sen Kohl's (WI) office said they were NOT getting calls.

* Sarbanes (MD) office said they were receiving quite a few calls favoring the amendment

"I have not made any calls in a long time...it felt good to do so...thanks to NumbersUSA.com for staying on top of this and keeping me informed. Your website is really terrific."
..............Robert Segal, Briarcliff Manor, NY

* Coburn staff (Oklahoma) indicated he would support the amendment.

* "It appeared that Isakson would support the Byrd Amendment."
..............John Spencer, Columbus, GA

* Cornyn (TX) office getting lot of opposition to his vote in the Judiciary Committee for the 350,000-a-year provision. Staff says Sen. Cornyn believes in the H-1B program.

* Graham (SC) staffer had no idea what the Byrd Amendment was.

"Sen. Murray's (WA) staffer made the comment that they had been getting a lot of calls in favor of the amendment."

"Sen. DeWine (OH) staffer said their phones have rung non-stop."

"I called Carl Levin's Office in Michigan and they told me he was for selling off the 350,000." [

QUESTIONS ASKED OF PEOPLE PROVIDING FEEDBACK FROM THEIR PHONE CALLS:

Was the Senate office you called aware of the Byrd Amendment?

Affirmative by a 5:2 ratio

Did the office indicate whether or not they are getting a lot of calls about this?

"All lines were busy when I first called. The second time I did reach a staffer who sounded harried..."
.........Phyllis Nemeth, Sierra Madre, CA

Salazar's voice mail box is full

"I have been unable to get through to the Washington office at all - it's been busy all day. I did get through to the Wichita Kansas office - after 4 tries. There seemed to be a lot of ringing in the background, and she was rather hurried" - Barb Freeman, Pratt, KS

Were you able to make the point that budget reconciliation is not the proper vehicle in which to make far-reaching immigration policy changes?

Pretty evenly split between those that thought they were and those that did not. Some didn't think the staffer understood their points.

Did you find the background information provided by NumbersUSA helpful?

"It was excellent. Being able to jot down your talking points and telephone numbers immediately and concisely presented to me made the whole process seem less and took me about 10 minutes. The Senators' phones were manned and prepared to take messages."
................Denise Bronsdon, Raynham, MA

"Yes, very, I think they wondered how I was so informed!!! Thank you"
................Max Myers, Grand Junction, CO

Did the staffer(s) with whom you spoke seem well informed about what is happening?

Pretty evenly split with a slight edge for those staffers who seemed well informed to our callers.

"I just called both my Senators (from New Jersey) about supporting the Byrd amendment, and the person who answered Senator Lautenberg's phone said that he was familiar with the bill and amendment, and that he has been getting a lot of calls about it. It looks like our phone calls and faxes are having an effect. Nice work on your part. Thanks."
..................George McLane

"Sen. Murray's (WA) staffer made the comment they had been getting a lot of calls in favor of the amendment."

"Sen. DeWine (OH) staffer said their phones have rang non-stop."

"I called Carl Levin's Office in Michigan and they told me he was for selling off the 350,000."
....................Marcia Mead, Houston, TX

You may be helped to discuss better with Senate staffers if you read the following email carefully from this California faxer:

"I watched Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)defend the H1-B visas on CSPAN. He is grossly misinformed about something he is pushing.

"He asserted that American workers were protected by a labor test. This is not true. There is no labor test for the H1-B. The employer can sponsor a foreigner for H-1B status even if qualified U.S. workers want the job. Unlike for most employment-based permanent residence visas, to get your H-1B status an employer need not prove the unavailability of a U.S. worker.

"He said American workers are protected by a prevailing wage requirement. The loopholes in the law allow H1-Bs to be hired for wages much less than the realistic prevailing wage.

"He claimed that changes slipped into the 2004 Omnibus Spending bill protected Americans against fraud in the H1-B. Not true! Those fraud provisions protected the foreigner from fraud but not Americans.

"He claimed that the fact that all H1-B visas were used proved that they are needed. Not true. Employers hire the cheap foreign labor first and Americans get the left over jobs."
...............James H. Murphy, North Hills, CA


in this email:
1. Call your Senators about their Immigration Grade Cards and how this vote will affect their grades
2. Live in a small-population state? You are REALLY important today
3. The vote count in the Senate on the Byrd Amendment right now indicates that we and the amendment will lose overwhelmingly later today
4. Immigration Lawyers have a phone campaign to defeat you and us
5. What you all reported to us about what you found yesterday when you made your calls
actions in brief:
1. Phone your state's 2 Senators. Get phone numbers and talking points at this Phone Action page.

2. You can always send free faxes to Congess at:
NumbersUSA.com/actionbuffet
donate now:
Click
Here to help NumbersUSA continue and expand our free faxing programs.

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