If Congress were a frat house and phone-answering staffers were the pledges, the past seven days would have basically been Hell Week.
The start of Donald Trump’s presidency showed Americans want their representatives in Washington, D.C. to know how they feel. Consider this little data point: The office of Colorado GOP U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner received 3,000 voicemails in one night this week alone.
Meanwhile, during the first week of the Trump administration, the Washington, D.C. and Lakewood offices of Democratic Congressman Ed Perlmutter of Golden logged 300 phone calls. About 90 percent of them were related to Trump, his cabinet picks, or executive orders, says spokeswoman Ashley Verville.
“It’s not 3,000 but it’s a lot for our office,” she said.
To put the number in perspective, this week last year the congressman’s two offices got only 16 calls— total, she said. During the first week of Obama’s presidency? About 50 people called in.
As for the offices of Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet of Denver, “We have received thousands of calls in the past week and it does not feel like it is going to stop any time soon,” says spokeswoman Laurie Cipriano. For Democratic Congresswoman Diana DeGette’s office it was “hundreds of calls, starting on Friday and on through the weekend, when people were leaving voicemails,” says spokeswoman Lynne Weil.
Demonstrators also have been hitting the streets, protesting outside the regional offices of Colorado’s U.S. senators in both parties. Former EPA employees dropped off letters at Bennet’s Denver office urging him to oppose Trump’s choice of Scott Pruitt to lead the EPA. And on Tuesday, around 15 people were cited for trespassing at Gardner’s Denver office.
More protests are being planned for Tuesday outside Gardner’s Denver office at noon, according to a sign-up posting at MoveOn.org.
Given the surge in civic action, we thought we’d let you know how to get in touch with Colorado’s congressional delegation. As we learned this week, sometimes the quickest way to find out where your federal lawmaker stands on a particular issue is to check his or her social media accounts, which we’ve rounded up here for you, too.
OK, to the phone lines and interwebs:
Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s official website, and his Facebook page. You can call his office at (303) 455-7600.
@POTUS should rescind EO. If not, Congress must stand together, override EO to end ban, & work to make U.S. safer consistent with our values
— Michael Bennet (@SenatorBennet) January 29, 2017
Republican U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner’s official website, and his Facebook page. You can call his D.C. office at (202) 224-5941.
This initiative will provide the CO tech community a seat at the table in DC & ensure the U.S. remains a global leader in tech.
— Cory Gardner (@SenCoryGardner) January 30, 2017
Republican Congressman Mike Coffman of Aurora’s official website, and his Facebook page. You can call his D.C. office at (202) 225-7882.
Had a great time visiting and hearing from local businesses this weekend. pic.twitter.com/OqBtlRy8bO
— Mike Coffman (@RepMikeCoffman) January 30, 2017
Democratic Congressman Ed Perlmutter of Golden’s official website, and his Facebook page. You can call his D.C. office at (202) 225-2645 and his Lakewood office at (303) 274-7944.
#MuslimBan is extreme & conflicts with America's values. I will continue fighting for inclusiveness. Thank you to everyone protesting!
— Rep. Ed Perlmutter (@RepPerlmutter) January 29, 2017
Republican Congressman Ken Buck of Windsor’s official website, and his Facebook page. You can call his D.C. office at (202) 225-4676, his Castle Rock office at (720) 639-9165 or his Greeley HQ at (970) 702-2136.
Had a great time visiting North Star Academy in Parker last week to discuss education issues and #SchoolChoice. #NationalSchoolChoiceWeek
— Congressman Ken Buck (@RepKenBuck) January 23, 2017
Democratic Congressman Jared Polis of Boulder’s official website, and Facebook page. You can call his Boulder office at (303) 484-9596, his D.C. office at (202) 225-2161, his Frisco office at (970) 409-7301, and his Fort Collins HQ at (970) 226-1239.
The big reveal: The wall is actually for keeping people IN
— Jared Polis (@jaredpolis) January 27, 2017
Republican Congressman Scott Tipton of Cortez’s official website, and Facebook page. In a recent statement, Tipton said he wants to hear from people in his district who are green card holders and permanent residents “who have been adversely impacted by the confusion about the executive order to contact my office, so my team and I can provide assistance.”
You can call his D.C office at (202) 225-4761, his Alamosa office at (719) 587-5105, his Durango office at (970) 259-1490, his Pueblo office at (719) 542-1073, and his Grand Junction office at (970) 241-2499.
My full statement on the Jan. 27, 2017, executive order on immigration: https://t.co/isLGUkVIbb pic.twitter.com/HP0FGic26G
— Rep. Scott Tipton (@RepTipton) January 30, 2017
Democratic Congresswoman Diana DeGette of Denver’s official website, and Facebook page. You can call her D.C. office at (202) 225-4431 and her Denver office at (303) 844-4988.
Democrats are coming together in front of the Supreme Court to fight for what’s right. #NoBan WATCH LIVE → https://t.co/iQMO0Q2Rpw
— Rep. Diana DeGette (@RepDianaDeGette) January 30, 2017
Colorado Springs Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn’s official website, and Facebook page.
You can call his D.C. office at (202) 225-4422, his Colorado Springs office at (719) 520-0055, and his Buena Vista office at (719) 520-0055.
The House will be working on rolling back burdensome regulations this week. We now have a partner in this effort in the White House. https://t.co/9LcAwVsiog
— Rep. Doug Lamborn (@RepDLamborn) January 30, 2017
Photo by Phil Roeder for Creative Commons in Flickr.
Republicans just don’t get IT…they are not going to listen to us…they will never govern for us…the Koch boys have won a big victory in washing dc, and Denver…Cory Gardner is a liar…