When it comes to ICE or any issue, does calling your members of Congress actually work?
To answer this, let’s back up. Every year, Congress passes 12 appropriations bills to fund the government.
One of those bills funds the Department of Homeland Security, which has ICE, and the deadline to pass that bill is January 30th. If it doesn’t pass by then, that part of the government shuts down. And right now, Republicans have 53 votes in the Senate, but they need 60 to stop a filibuster — which means seven Democrats have the power to withhold their vote and force changes to ICE or not vote with the Republicans, and that part of the government shuts down.
But in the House, Republicans can only afford to lose two votes. And on top of that, we’ve just seen Republicans buck their own party. This year, five Republicans in the Senate voted with Democrats recently to require the president to get congressional authorization before any further action in Venezuela, and in the House, 17 Republicans just voted with the Democrats to extend ACA subsidies for health care for three years.
One of the Republicans who voted to extend ACA subsidies said it was because of his constituents. So between the fact that 2026 is an election year for members of Congress, the fact that there’s an upcoming funding deadline for DHS, which houses ICE; between the fact that there are very slim majorities for Republicans in both houses of Congress, and the fact that we just saw Republicans buck their own party in the House and the Senate, I can tell you that calling works.
When you call members of Congress, it has to be your own members. Otherwise it doesn’t get tallied. They write down the names and the zip codes of the people who called, and they also note the tone of voice of the people calling. They use phone calls specifically to measure how their constituents feel. And just to be clear, calling reps is easy.
Watch to the end of the video to see Ben call and then try it yourself.
Call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121
Calling works — because at the end of the day, above all, members want to get reelected and they rely on you to do that.
Stay tuned for more action items to fight authoritarianism.
Ben Sheehan is a political commentator and digital creator. He specializes in civics education, which is showcased in his latest book, What Does the Constitution Actually Say?: A Non-Boring Guide to How Our Democracy Is Supposed to Work. Check out his Substack, Politics Made Easy.
