One statewide group is attempting to increase the conservative voice in the state.

Anita Andrews, a nationwide political consultant, spoke to Eagle Forum of Alabama supporters about proper and improper ways to make their voices heard about political issues at a forum meeting Tuesday night in Dothan. Andrews is the keynote speaker of “Action Alabama,” a series of grassroots workshops across the state designed to show conservatives how to make their voices heard by legislators and voters.

“A legislator will not listen to you unless you are large enough to vote him out of office,” Andrews told the group.
Andrews explained a process that she said would ensure “victory” in important issues.
“The first principle is to understand that your foundation is not their foundation,” Andrews said. “If you expect the voter’s foundation is your foundation, you lose. It’s a very detrimental mistake.”

According to Andrews, conservatives need to understand that their Christian values are not necessarily shared by their opponents and thus will not be convincing in arguments.

“Second, you must respect the voter,” she said.
The failure of conservatives, Andrews said, is ignoring the people in the middle, which makes up a vast majority, and focusing on the  percent on the extreme opposite end of the political spectrum.
“This 80 percent of people in the middle are not your enemies,” she said. “Conservatives live in fear. Stop living in fear. Respect your voter, and you will win them.”

Andrews stressed the importance of appealing to people’s hearts, citing the ineffectiveness of statistics in swaying popular opinion.
“You can have all the statistics in the world, and you won’t win. Statistics never convinced anyone. Get in a pattern of making emotional statements backed by facts, not the other way around,” Andrews said.

Forum attendees found the speech helpful.
“I thought it was very informative,” said Bill McGowan. “It revealed more current information to me.”
Some attendees said Andrews’ speech changed their outlook on political communication.
“My eyes have really been opened tonight,” said Barbara Moore. “It helped me see things differently, helped me see what motivates people.”

Virginia Sanders agreed.
“I thought it was excellent,” she said. “She pointed out a lot of things I never did think about, like how to contact people and the importance of understanding how to approach people.”

According to its Web site, www.alabamaeagle.org, Eagle Forum of Alabama is a group intended to “equip citizens with timely, reliable information from a conservative, Constitutional point of view on public policy issues that affect the family.”