The Congressional switchboards have been lighting up all day with health care supporters calling members through the Organizing for America call parties, and OFA is about to hit its second goal of 150,000 calls.
A staffer for Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) called to detail that office’s experiences with the calls today, saying the volunteers offer a sample of varying perspectives on health care. Some are calling for a single-payer system, some are asking the Congresswoman to stand firm for a public option, while others are offering general support for President Obama’s plan.
The staffer told TPMDC that more than 100 calls flooded in today. During a daily staff meeting they usually can have one person listen for the calls, but today they had to halt the meeting so a handful of aides could answer the phones.
“It’s more calls in a single day than we’ve ever received on health care, and pales in comparison to efforts done by opponents. It’s no small feat,” the Schakowsky staffer told me. “It’s definitely noticed and having an effect.”
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Late update: OFA raised the goal again to 200k, and as of 4:50 are past 168k.
Americans United for Change sent reporters a story suggesting the overwhelming majority of the calls are in favor of the public option.
Later update: At 6:06, nearly two hours before President Obama would join his supporters on the Webcast tonight, OFA announced it had broken the 200,000 goal. As of this writing at 7:15, they are almost at 215,000 calls.
Andy Phelan with Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) got in touch today to tell me his office’s experience, which mirrored anecdotes we’ve been hearing all day.
He said they had received about 150 calls split between the district office and the Hill office, with all but three of them in general support of health care reform.
Johnson is one of the progressives who threatened to vote against a final health care bill if it doesn’t include a “robust” public option but Phelan said once the bill is on the floor his boss will have to “weigh those options for himself.”
