Dear Congressman Doggett,

Please read Mike Stark’s post at
http://campaignsilo.firedoglak…..ntability/

As one of your constituents, and a long time supporter, I ask that you let Mike interview you on camera as soon as possible.

Please.

Thank you,
Jim (last name deleted)

I expect him to be happy to speak with you.

You can make an appointment to talk with an aide who knows far more. or contact their scheduler and make a special trip to D.C. with a group of folks from the Reps district. Worth the time

When you got Doggett on tape, it pissed me off because I had, at that point in time, two calls and two emails into his office asking the same questions, and I could not get a response.

Similarly, I have calls into his office now, again, without response aside from a young harried staffer blowing me off (albeit politely). Perhaps we need a clinic on how to get through the screeners so we can speak to someone who actually knows what is going on.

Called the D.C. office and Joe was not very friendly (let me know they have been getting these calls). I let him know that I was a member of group of folks here in Athens who are all respectful single payer advocates and had no plans to interrupt any town hall events or any other events that Senator Voinvovich would be holding. That what we were interested in were thoughtful, respectful dialogue. Joe said that there are no town hall meetings on Voinovich’s schedule. I asked what Voinovich’s stance was on Health Care Reform? These are Joe’s exact words “he opposes both single payer and the public option” I then asked what does he support. Joe answered “the Senator supports increasing competition and lowering cost”
I asked “how does he suggest that happen” Joe “the public should be able to go over state lines to access health care plans”

I then called the Cleveland office (216-522-7095. Spoke with Lucy (she also said that they have been receiving lots of calls) She suggested I talk with our district Rep I let her know that there was no Voinovich district rep in s.e. ohio. She put me through to John who was the most helpful person I spoke with. Let him know we wanted to get with Voinovich directly
Set up a meeting with Voinovich during the recess. Here is Voinovich’s direct scheduler.

Beth Martins
Fax 216-522-7097
email bethmartins@voinovich.senate.gov

Now here is the best part of these calls. When I asked John (who was the most helpful and well informed)what Senator Voinovich’s stance was on health care reform. He said that Voinovich had “concerns” about single payer and the public option. When I let John know that Joe in the D.C. office had said that the Senator “opposed” both single payer and the public option. John repeated that the Senator had “concerns”

John and I had a short conversation about the distance between “oppose” and “concerns” He agreed.

I hope folks in Ohio contact Voinovich and slip through the crack between “oppose” and ‘concerns”. Sounds like we can work on Voinovich. Touch his what I believe to be truly compassionate bone in his body.

VOINOVICH SCHEDULER…MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TO GO SEE VOINOVICH (hope to see him in October)
Beth Martins
Fax 216-522-7097
email bethmartins@voinovich.senate.gov

here is the clip to the Hardball switch hitters talk

Face of the health care bill in question
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/#32866030

Howard Fineman “Voinovich is the guy to watch” Chuck Todd agreed

LET’S NOT JUST WATCH LET’S GENTLY BUT FIRMLY PUSH VOINOVICH

Your FDL-directed efforts on the ground in D.C. may even make the difference, in the end, in the public insurance option debate.

You literally represent tens of millions of fellow Americans, who have no way to be present in D.C., or to evade, as the corporate lobbyists with their promises of cash rewards do, the suffocating filters our representatives have erected between themselves and their constituents, in the thoroughly-compromised and corrupt environment of Capitol Hill. You are perhaps the sole lobbyist for the interests of the American people on the ground there – and you don’t want a secret meeting, you want America to know what you heard from our lawmakers.

Your lobbying effort – in addition to putting the “public” back into public office, to great resistance from legislators used to their self-serving private deals – is “selling” the enhanced well-being of the greatest number of your fellow citizens, in the founding tradition of forging a more perfect union. Your for-profit lobbyist competitors – the ones who take up all the private meeting time of the Too-Important-For-Little-People legislators – are selling personal gain for the incumbent legislator, and for their corporate employer(s). That’s an extremely stark difference, and seeing it on video is really the only way in modern America to hammer that difference home.

A doctor commenting recently on DailyKos (fayea), described the battle for a public insurance option well, by calling it “the public option and the principles for which it stands.” The more of those fundamental principles you can enunciate in your questions to legislators, the better. The clearer the concept, the more just the cause, the better we can expose those federal legislators unable or unwilling to publicly admit, with the courage of their convictions, where their real loyalties lie.

Here’s a bit more from fayea’s comment, pointing out that insurance premiums even for small medical practices are going through the roof [in other words, doctors get it coming and going - insurers referee the care of their patients, while simultaneously impeding their own ability to insure themselves, their nurses, and their office/insurance billing staff]:

Without a robust public option, there will be no pressure on the private insurance companies to stop raising premiums. The premium for my small business (doctor and staff) was raised by 38% this year.

While the regulations to stop denials for pre-existing conditions and to stop rescission will be helpful, without a viable public option, those reforms would only cause private insurance companies to raise premiums even further.

Of course, fayea is one of the voices Congress made sure we didn’t hear from in this debate, in their pro forma public hearings, by and large. Congressional hearings are now more often than not little more than a successful effort to censor – by limiting those experts permitted to testify to the High and Mighty, and by ridiculously truncating the questions that can be asked and answered (firing squads mandatory, with collective consent, for those exceeding five(!)-minute rounds).

FDL and Mike Stark are trying to overcome the effects of that Congressionally-imposed censorship, so as to allow the will of the American people to be heard. For their dedicated, often-thankless efforts, the tireless citizens behind firedoglake.com deserve enormous credit, and generous support – particularly from those few with the capacity to give without pain, in the name of a better standard of living for all.