OK, now that the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act has passeed the House, now we go onto the Senate!

Our prospects of passing it there are pretty good. With Kennedy sponsoring it and 43 cosponsors, it looks like it's sitting pretty. Except for those two minor issues: first, we still need 7 votes in addition to the cosponsors and Kennedy to get it through, and, second, we'll need 23 more to override the impending Bush veto (who knew he was soft on crime?). So here's the list of Senators who aren't cosponsoring the bill:

Alexander, Lamar (R - TN)
Allard, Wayne (R - CO)
Baucus, Max (D - MT)
Bennett, Robert (R - UT)
Bond, Christopher (R - MO)
Brownback, Sam (R - KS)
Bunning, Jim (R - KY)
Burr, Richard (R - NC)
Byrd, Robert (D - WV)
Carper, Thomas (D - DE)
Chambliss, Saxby (R - GA)
Coburn, Tom (R - OK)
Cochran, Thad (R - MS)
Coleman, Norm (R - MN)
Collins, Susan (R - ME)
Corker, Bob (R - TN)
Cornyn, John (R - TX)
Craig, Larry (R - ID)
Crapo, Mike (R - ID)
DeMint, Jim (R - SC)
Dole, Elizabeth (R - NC)
Domenici, Pete (R - NM)
Dorgan, Byron (D - ND)
Ensign, John (R - NV)
Enzi, Michael B. (R - WY)
Feingold, Russell (D - WI)
Graham, Lindsey (R - SC)
Grassley, Chuck (R - IA)
Gregg, Judd (R - NH)
Hagel, Chuck (R - NE)
Hatch, Orrin (R - UT)
Hutchison, Kay Bailey (R - TX)
Inhofe, James M. (R - OK)
Isakson, Johnny (R - GA)
Kohl, Herb (D - WI)
Kyl, Jon (R - AZ)
Lott, Trent (R - MS)
Lugar, Richard (R - IN)
Martinez, Mel (R - FL)
McCain, John (R - AZ)
McConnell, Mitch (R - KY)
Murkowski, Lisa (R - AK)
Pryor, Mark L. (D - AR)
Reid, Harry (D - NV)
Roberts, Pat (R - KS)
Sessions, Jeff (R - AL)
Shelby, Richard C. (R - AL)
Stevens, Ted (R - AK)
Sununu, John E. (R - NH)
Tester, Jon (D - MT)
Thomas, Craig (R - WY)
Thune, John (R - SD)
Vitter, David (R - LA)
Voinovich, George V. (R - OH)
Warner, John (R - VA)
Webb, Jim (D - VA)

A couple, like Feingold, Webb, and Reid, will probably go our way, and a few, like Hatch, Lott, and Allard, are probably lost causes. But think about the non-insane Republicans and often faltering Democrats who are on that list. They're the ones who need convincing.

So take out your fancy stationery and pens, because once again, it's letter writing time. Remember that these folks are probably receiving a storm of letters from fundamentalists who think that this bill is akin to banning Jesus or that it will ban free speech. (Funny how the biggest free speech nuts in the country, probably even the world, don't think that it will hurt free speech, but why let a fact like that get in the way of a good scare tactic?)

Find your Senator's Washington and local office addresses here. Get talking points and resources to help you get started here.

Now let's do it again!