So what do Democrats in districts with Republican representatives do for loyal representation?

[originalpckelly]

They cannot by the rules of etiquette contact members of Congress who are from other districts. So how are they represented in Congress? If you cannot even contact the Democrats in Congress from other districts, how do you get represented?

It's like the virtual representation that people in the American colonies had in the Parliament back before the revolution.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_representation

NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION!

The same is true for the Republicans in districts where Democrats are represented in Congress. It's plain not fair for people on both sides of the isle. They suffer as much as we do.

The solution is to have more than one representative in Congress from the same district. However, they shouldn't have just one vote. If they truly represent the people who voted for them, let the number of votes each representative received in the election be the number of votes they cast in the Congress.

[Drale]

1. Well I still have one good senator

Mr. Durban, I guess its like someone who has an arm in a cast for 6 years, what can you do.

[originalpckelly]

2. It would probably be best to do it in the House first.

It is possible already to have Senators from either party. The Senate is a different body, but the House of Representatives is supposed to be far more populist.

[MineralMan]

3. That's a situation many DUers have faced for decades. Now, there

are some more people in that situation. There's nothing new or unique about it. What have people done in the past? I guess people will have to keep doing that.

[Catshrink]

4. When I've written my senators they don't even bother answering me.

Vile Kyl & Gramps McCain.

[BanTheGOP]

5. Screw the district. Congress represents everyone COLLECTIVELY

Since Congress is, by definition, a COLLECTIVE organization that AFFECTS the interests of ALL americans, there is no need to worry about etiquette. I call up congress members all the time, usually to bitch and moan that they aren't doing enough, or to scream and politically threated republicans. The only ones who gives a rat's ass about district exclusivity are generally repugs anyway; in fact, democrats from other districts APPRECIATE and HIGHLY WELCOME calls from constituents from outside of their district.

I have a Magic Jack, a buck seventy a month. I average over 2,500 calls to politicans a month on it, that's like half a cent a call. My MJ has probably affected more constituent-requested legislation, per cost of usage, than any other phone in the world.

[blondeatlast]

7. From McCain I've always gotten a letter saying basically; "you have a point, but

I voted the way I did because I'm such a maverick," or some such other BS.

And his local office knows my voice; I get "accidentally" hung up on a LOT.

[marybourg]

11. I have gotten a personal response from Kyl's staff, but never

from mcCain's.

[Davis_X_Machina]

6. There's nothing in the Constitution prohibiting multi-member...

....districts. Lani_Guinier was something of a specialist on the topic. And England once had many, many, multi-member Parliamentary constituencies.

There would be problems in states subject to the provisions of the Voting Rights Act, but those could be addressed by statute.

The real problem is there's no guarantee that a multi-member district would actually reliably produce a multi-party set of representatives.

[Thor_MN]

8. They simply are not represented

I've seen several conservative candidates pressed to reconcile their expressed opinion with polls that show the majority of constituents of the district hold the exact opposite opinion and all they do is offer platitudes and that they feel they represent the majority regardless of any evidence to the contrary.

[groundloop]

9. I've got about the worst 3 people in congress working for me - Gingrey, Isaakson, Chambliss

Every time I've written any of them I get a response telling me why they're right and I'm wrong. I don't believe I'm going to be quite so polite with them in the future.

[Bitwit1234]

10. Bonehead is already saying he is going to try to do away

with the Health Care because AMERICA wants it. So he reads the polls when they favor him and the republicans. But he doesn't listen to the polls when they say America wants Health Care dismantled.

[w8liftinglady]

12. as a constituent of joe,barton,Hutchison,and cornyn...I am basically F%cked

When my son went to Iraq the second and third times...no response from them...not even a generic F'U'...when I asked them why a soldier could be sent back 2 more times after injury.I have written them and called their offices more times than I can remember.It basically makes no difference.