<div dir="ltr"><div>I just called. </div><div><br></div><div>The staffer was astonished. "Wait, so you're <i>for </i>the Syrian refugees?" </div><div><br></div><div>"Yes, absolutely," I said. "Have you been getting a lot of calls against the Syrian refugees?" </div><div><br></div><div>"Yes," he said. </div><div><br></div><div>"Am I your first call in support of the Syrian refugees? </div><div><br></div><div>"Yes, as far as I know," he said.<br></div><div><br></div><div>"Alright," I said. "I'm gonna tell my friends, see if I can get anyone else to call."</div><div><br></div><div>===</div><br clear="all"><div><div class="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr">Robert Naiman<br>Policy Director<br>Just Foreign Policy<br><a href="http://www.justforeignpolicy.org" target="_blank">www.justforeignpolicy.org</a><br><a href="mailto:naiman@justforeignpolicy.org" target="_blank">naiman@justforeignpolicy.org</a><br><div><span style="text-align:left">(202) 448-2898 x1</span><br></div></div></div></div>
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<div class="gmail_quote">On Nov 17, 2015 11:26 PM, "Jon Rainwater, Peace Action West" <<a href="mailto:alerts@peaceactionwest.org" target="_blank">alerts@peaceactionwest.org</a>> wrote:<br type="attribution"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left-width:1px;border-left-color:rgb(204,204,204);border-left-style:solid;padding-left:1ex">
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<p style="text-align:center"><span><span style="color:rgb(0,128,128)"><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Please Call Today</span></span><br>
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<strong><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Capitol Switchboard: <a href="tel:844-735-1362" value="+18447351362" target="_blank">844-735-1362</a></span></strong><br>
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<span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Ask your Representative to vote against efforts to slam the door on Syrian refugees. </span></span></p>
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<p>Dear Jon,</p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">If we don't mobilize quickly, <strong><em>in the next few days</em></strong>, Congress may shut the door on long-suffering Syrian refugee families. </span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Speaker of the House Paul Ryan told House Republicans yesterday that he wants a vote </span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;font-weight:700;font-style:italic;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">this week</span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> to block Syrian refugee resettlement.[1] </span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><em><strong><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Can you call Congress today and ask them to vote against slamming the door on Syrian refugees?</span></strong></em><br>
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<strong><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">1. Call the Capitol Switchboard: <a href="tel:844-735-1362" value="+18447351362" target="_blank">844-735-1362</a></span><br>
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<span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">2. Ask to speak with your Representative</span></strong></span></p>
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<strong><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">3. You can tell them the following :</span><br>
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<span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">"I strongly support the U.S welcoming Syrian refugees. Please vote no on efforts to turn away the refugees."</span></span></strong></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The level of misinformation broadcast by governors and presidential candidates about refugee resettlement has been staggering. Many critics claimed that there's “no real vetting” of Syrian refugees.[2] In fact, refugees receive greater scrutiny than any other group coming into the country. They are vetted by the UN and then by multiple US agencies long before they get here. This rigorous process often takes years. </span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The moral stakes are simple -- the golden rule on a global scale. What would we want for our families if our communities were torn apart by unthinkable violence? The United States has a proud tradition of welcoming the persecuted. Now is no time to turn back on that tradition. </span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The fear-mongering is as strategically short-sighted as it is morally repugnant. Most analysts believe that Paris attacks were designed to invite a backlash against refugees and Muslims. Such a backlash is powerful fuel for the sense of grievance that is the lifeblood of ISIS recruitment. </span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><strong>Please call the Capitol Switchboard now: <a href="tel:844-735-1362" value="+18447351362" target="_blank">844-735-1362</a>.</strong> Urge your representative to vote no on bills that would stop the US from welcoming these refugees. </span><br>
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<span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Thank you in advance for your compassionate action.</span><br>
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<span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Jon Rainwater </span><br>
<span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Executive Director</span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">[1] Paul Ryan: House May Pitch Bill Blocking Syrian Refugees, Huffington Post, November 17, 2015</span></span></p>
<p><span><span style="font-size:14.6667px;font-family:Arial;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">[2.] Pete King: No vetting, no Syrian refugees, CNN.com, November 17, 2015</span></span></p>
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