Ways to gather intelligence
- Start with the basics. See what comes up on your favorite search engine when you search for your legislator with any of the following words: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Baltics, NATO, Nord Stream 2, Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, etc..
- Members of Congress love posting their positions on Twitter. Find their twitter account and do an advanced search to see if they have tweeted anything relevant.
- Each Member of Congress has a personal website which can be found through Congress.gov. There, they might have press releases that show their opinions on the Baltics.
- One way to view debates and State of the Unions is to view it as a scavenger hunt. Were your issues spoken about? For example, during the 2020 Democratic Presidential Debate, many candidates spoke about how their first task will be to strengthen relationships with NATO countries. Additionally, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s first international trip was to NATO countries. Bipartisan wins. Nice.
- One of the great things about emailing legislators is that someone almost always has to respond. This gives an idea of exactly what a legislator thinks about an issue, when a statement by that politician might not be available publicly. Additionally, this gives insight into how much the politician knows about an issue. If you email your senator saying you want them to support the Baltics and fight Russian disinformation, but that senator responds saying they are supporting the Mueller investigation into Russian election interference, that senator might need to be informed of the ways Congress can address disinformation campaigns.
- Personal meetings with staff could be a great way to learn about what inside knowledge about a particular issue. If a bill is not moving, but the legislator is a sponsor of the bill, this is a great time to ask what could be done to help move the bill. During a personal meeting, staff may also ask you to gather intelligence for them. They might want to know about any stories about how the Baltics are fighting against Russian aggression, or they may want to learn lessons from the Baltics on how to fight disinformation or improve cybersecurity.
