This is an excerpt from the Indivisible Montgomery newsletter from Jan. 4. Want the newsletter in your inbox? Sign up here.

Day of action!
Our first day of action will be Thursday, Jan. 5. This is the day all of Indivisible Montgomery will make calls to our reps and encourage them to do what they can to initiate an independent commission to investigate the Russian hacking of the 2016 election. And when you’re done with that, please provide feedback on how your calls went—What information did you find out? What were the staffer’s names and were they helpful? Were the scripts useful? Anything else?

This is exciting! We’re taking part in our democracy, and letting the people who represent us know that we are going to hold them accountable. Your calls should take only 3-4 minutes each, and you can do them all at once or spaced out through the day. It’s up to you!

So what should you say? Scroll down for contact information and some sample phone scripts for each of our representatives.

What is Indivisible Montgomery?
But first, we’re going to call these offices and let them know we are part of a group called Indivisible Montgomery. So if a staffer asks, “What is Indivisible Montgomery?” you can say:

“Indivisible Montgomery is a group of concerned citizens in Montgomery County, Maryland, working to make sure our members of Congress do their best to safeguard the gains we’ve made over the past eight years and to derail the Trump agenda.”

Phone scripts and contact information
Here are some phone scripts you can follow for each of the offices. You should be making three phone calls: (1) Senator Cardin, (2) Senator Van Hollen and (3) your Representative. If you need to find your representative, go here and put in your zip code. Do not call the Representatives from other districts. It is a waste of your time.

Note, these scripts assume you’ll be leaving a message with someone. However, if you talk to the staffers we’re trying to connect to, you should still use the part of the script that starts with “Of course!” Because we don’t know what the staffer will say I can’t script the rest of the conversation, but try to get your question answered. And if he/she answers it, say thank you, get his/her name, say you hope they keep up the good work and you’ll talk again soon.

Senator Cardin’s office – 202.224.4524
Staffer: Senator Cardin’s office, how can I help you?
You: Hi! I’m a constituent of the Senator’s and part of Indivisible Montgomery. Can I please speak with the staffer who handles foreign affairs issues?
Staffer: I’m happy to take down any comments you may have. Can I ask for your name and address?
You: Sure! I’m [NAME] and I live at [ADDRESS].
Staffer: Great, the staffer who handles foreign affairs isn’t at her desk right now. Can I take down your comment?
You: Of course! I want to thank the Senator for his leadership in pushing for an independent commission to investigate the Russian hacking of the 2016 election. This is a critical issue that gets at the very fabric of our democracy. Russia has been propping up far-right, hateful, nationalist movements and I find it deeply troubling that some of our government’s leadership, including the president-elect and his team, are downplaying this issue. I know the Senator plans to introduce legislation regarding this commission, and I’m wondering what he plans to do to make sure the process of forming the commission moves forward.
Staffer: Got it. I will pass on your comment.
You: Thank you for passing it along. When can I expect to hear back from the staffer on this matter? [If you feel you have an opening, try to pin the staffer down on something more specific than “later.” And make sure you leave contact information, either an email address or phone number.]

Rep. Sarbanes’ office – 202.225.4016
Staffer: Representative Sarbane’s office, how can I help you?
You: Hi! I’m a constituent of the Congressman’s and part of Indivisible Montgomery. Can I please speak with the staffer who handles foreign affairs issues?
Staffer: I’m happy to take down any comments you may have. Can I ask for your name and address?
You: Sure! I’m [NAME] and I live at [ADDRESS].
Staffer: Great, the staffer who handles foreign affairs isn’t at her desk right now. Can I take down your comment?
You: Of course! I want to thank the Congressman for his statement on Russian hacking in the 2016 election. This is a critical issue that gets at the very fabric of our democracy. Russia has been propping up far-right, hateful, nationalist movements and I find it deeply troubling that some of our government’s leadership, including the president-elect and his team, are downplaying this issue. I’d like to know what the Congressman plans to do to press this issue in the new Congress?
Staffer: Got it. I will pass on your comment.
You: Thank you for passing it along. When can I expect to hear back from the staffer on this matter? [If you feel you have an opening, try to pin the staffer down on something more specific than “later.” And make sure you leave contact information, either an email address or phone number.]

Senator Van Hollen’s office – 202.224.4654
Representative Delaney’s office – 202.225.2721
Representative Raskin’s office – 202.225.5341
Staffer: Senator Van Hollen’s/Representative Raskin’s/Delaney’s office, how can I help you?
You: Hi! I’m a constituent of the Senator’s/Representatives and part of Indivisible Montgomery. Can I please speak with the staffer who handles foreign affairs issues?
Staffer: I’m happy to take down any comments you may have. Can I ask for your name and address?
You: Sure! I’m [NAME] and I live at [ADDRESS].
Staffer: Great, the staffer who handles foreign affairs isn’t at her desk right now. Can I take down your comment?
You: Of course! I am concerned about the reports of the Russian hacking in the 2016 election. This is a critical issue that gets at the very fabric of our democracy. Russia has been propping up far-right, hateful, nationalist movements and I find it deeply troubling that some of our government’s leadership, including the president-elect and his team, are downplaying this issue. I would like to know what the Senator/Representative plans to do to make sure this is thoroughly and transparently investigated.
Staffer: Got it. I will pass on your comment.
You: Thank you for passing it along. And do you know if the Senator/Representative has spoken out publicly on the matter?
<If yes, take down the information. If not–> You: I find that disappointing. The Senator/Representative has an important platform, and as my elected representative, I expect him to speak out on matters of importance. Do you know when I will be able to talk to the staffer on this matter? [If you feel you have an opening, try to pin the staffer down on something more specific than “later.” And make sure you leave contact information, either an email address or phone number.]

Upcoming events

• Next day of action!: Tuesday, Jan. 10.
• The Women’s March on Washington on Jan. 21. From their site: “The Women’s March on Washington will send a bold message to our new government on their first day in office, and to the world that women’s rights are human rights. We stand together, recognizing that defending the most marginalized among us is defending all of us.”

What we’re reading
“Contentious confirmation fights, a GOP assault on Obamacare — and, more than likely, hints of Republican infighting to come. Welcome to the new Congress.”

This article from Politico sums up what we should expect from the new Congress in January.