Monday, February 11, 2019

Tracking Congress

Senator Booker is one of my senators. When he declared his presidential candidacy, I decided to look deeper into his voting record. I know I generally like how he votes. But, I was curious about the things that don't make the news.

I had been using this one website for contact information for my representatives in congress. In the top you enter your state and zip code. Then, it shows you a list of all of your senators and your representative. It includes all office phone numbers and other ways to contact each. It also includes information on the voters. Presidential votes, ACA enrollment, and more.

https://www.contactingcongress.org/

I wanted a website like that. One where I can enter my zip code and get a complete list on how those representing me voted. With a google search I found GovTrack. It's an actual government site. You subscribe to all of your representatives in congress. Yes, you have to go to each page separately. Each day something happens, you get an email at the end of the day.

Once you go to the link below, enter your address. Hit the button for "district" and it comes up with your senators and representative. You can click on the green "view legislative profile and get alerts" button. You aren't getting the alerts yet. Once on the page for that person, is a different green button that says "track". This is free to use.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members

This is the link for Cory Booker's page on GovTrack. I find it to be very helpful. It is nice to see a wider view of where they all stand on various matters. I am putting Sen. Booker's link below. Some readers might be interested in learning more about this presidential candidate.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/cory_booker/412598

The emails talks about bills introduced by your representatives and what status they are in. That updates if the bill moves to a new stage. It also mentions the various bills voted on and how they vote. So far I am not surprised by much. There is one bill in the senate, S1 that passed. Booker voted "nay" and Menendez voted "yea". They don't often disagree. But, this is one.

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/1

This bill authorizes assistance and weapons transfers to Israel, and extends defense cooperation with Jordan. It establishes additional sanctions related to the conflict in Syria, and allows states to divest from entities boycotting Israel.

It's an issue I'd like to learn more about. I haven't decided who I agree with yet. I don't fully understand things. Amy Klobuchar voted "yea" but, the other democratic presidential candidates voted "nay" like Booker. I lean towards siding with Booker on this one. This is from the GovTrack email (Feb 6, 2019).  

Totals

All Votes R D I
Yea 77%
 
 
 
77
52
 
24
 
1
 
Nay 23%
 
 
 
23
1
 
21
 
1
 
Bill Passed. Simple Majority Required. Feb 5, 2019 at 3:33 p.m. ET. Source: senate.gov.

What the bill does

The Strengthening America’s Security in the Middle East Act would institute several measures related to that region, including:
  • Reauthorize a cooperation agreement the U.S. struck with Jordan in 2015: a three-year deal to streamline defense sales, secure the country’s borders with Iraq and Syria, and fight ISIS.
  • Authorizing sanctions against the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria unless several conditions are met — conditions which are unlikely to be met, such as releasing political prisoners and no longer targeting civilian populations.
  • Extend an existing loan guarantee program with Israel through 2023, while increasing protections for state and local governments that refuse to invest in or contract with companies which boycott Israel.
At least 26 states have passed laws banning their contractors from boycotting Israel. This includes blue states like California and New York, red states like Texas and Alabama, and all six swing states that flipped from Obama in 2012 to Trump in 2016.
The bill, numbered S. 1, was introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).

I am finding these to be crucial tools. I wish they had this for state government too. There have been other bills introduced in both places. A bunch of bills really. I just used this as an example because my senators from the same party voted differently and I was curious about why. It's important to keep track of how your congressional representatives vote. It's also important to contact them when you don't like what you see in their voting record.

https://www.contactingcongress.org/

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members

No comments:

Post a Comment