National Commander Seehafer calls for legislative advocacy beyond Washington Conference

Prior hundreds of American Legion Family members heading to Capitol Hill to meet with members of Congress and their staff, American Legion National Commander Daniel Seehafer stressed how important those members were as a voice for the nation’s veterans, military and their families.

But he also had another message: don’t let the advocacy end with the Washington Conference.

During the Feb. 27 Commander’s Rally, Seehafer urged Legionnaires to take advantage of The American Legion Grassroots Action Center, which allows members to directly reach out to their members of the House and Senate. The web platform lists the Legion’s top legislative issues, along with pre-written text that can be sent directly to the representative or senator.

“It is time, now, to make legion.org/action a part of our daily lives,” Seehafer said. “Why?  Well, it could mean the difference between life and death. That’s why.

“You can remind Congress that it can Be the One to save the lives of our veterans. For example, Congress can Be the One that improves access to mental health treatment. Congress can Be the One to improve the quality of life for our military and their families.  Congress can Be the One indeed, but it’s through you.  Remember:  Don’t underestimate your power.”

Seehafer stressed that “it has never been easier to message your members of Congress. You don’t even have to write the words. Simply click one of our legislative priorities, filling out the appropriate information, like name, address and ZIP code, and it automatically finds your representative and/or senator, and press the highlighted red button: SEND MESSAGE. 

Seehafer listed the top five American Legion departments currently using the Legislative Action Center:

1.   Alaska

2.   Oregon

3.   Hawaii

4.   Wisconsin

5.   Nevada

“And remember to do this every day,” Seehafer said. “Again, legion.org/action. This website allows you to do this every 24 hours for every issue listed. You can also post these messages on Facebook, X and other social media if you want.

“It's easy, but more importantly, two to three minutes of my time, your time, is worth a life, don’t you think?”

Seehafer will testify in person on March 13 before a joint session of the House and Senate Committees on Veterans’ Affairs. He hopes on that day to hear a specific message from those who will hear his testimony.

“My goal is for senators and representatives to tell me, ‘Commander, Commander, Commander, we’ve been hearing from your members, and we’ve been hearing from them a lot,” Seehafer said. “I think we all know the old saying: ‘vote early, vote often’. Well, I’m asking you to email early and email often, through our Grassroots Action Center.”