Afternoon News
From the Politico:
Organizing for America today announces the next phase of OFA’s “Health Insurance Reform Now: Let’s Get It Done” bus tour. The first leg of the tour ran from 8/26 thru 9/3, hit 10 cities and attracted over 12,000 supporters….
The next leg kicks off on the night of the President’s speech following a watch party in Atlanta, heads to Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Utah and ends in Vegas. This next leg follows a two week period where OFA held over 2,000 events in support of reform. In addition to the bus tour, over a thousand watch parties are being held tomorrow, followed by a strategy session conference call with David Plouffe.
From the Lehigh Valley Times:
When Janice Swack rallies here Sunday to promote President Barack Obama’s proposed health care reform, she will not be alone.
Besides the local showing she is hoping for, the Democrat from Independence Township will be joined by similar rallies around the country, including a march in Washington, D.C., that is expected to draw between 6,000 and 10,000 people, according to organizers.
Additional rallies are planned around the Lehigh Valley in the coming weeks.
"My husband and I have it all," said Swack, 80, crediting government programs with helping her and her World War II veteran husband, Myron, on their way. "I look at other people and they don’t even have health care. It’s just not fair…"
"These rallies are going to be held around the United States," said organizer Julie Paulsen, 59, of Sioux City, Iowa. "It’s not just going to be in Washington, D.C.; it’s going to be in Chicago; it’s going to be in Pennsylvania. It’s going to be everywhere."
Other demonstrations in the Lehigh Valley are planned, if not scheduled, said Marie Rodgers, who is in charge of the health care action team for the Bethlehem chapter of Organizing for America…
From the Dubuque Telegraph Herald:
At one time, when she had "good" health care, Megan Ruiz said the monthly premium for her health insurance was 0.
She and her employer paid the monthly tab to cover Ruiz, her husband and their son. The annual deductible for the three of them was ,000.
"You wonder what’s the point when you’re paying that much per month" in premiums, Ruiz said.
Ruiz and her 2-year-old son, Brandon, gathered with a crowd of about 60 people Wednesday marching through downtown Dubuque in support of health care reform.
The rally brought the policy debate that has dominated the national discussion in recent weeks to the doorstep of the Historic Federal Building…
A petition with 16,500 signatures from supporters around the state was presented at the office of Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa.
From the North Carolina News & Observer:
About 65 advocates of health-care legislation rallied Saturday morning for the last time before Congress returns to Washington.
Members of the crowd, many of whom hoisted signs that read "Health care reform now!" shared personal stories about expensive insurance premiums and the shortcomings of the current health-care system in front of the Sanford Federal Building on New Bern Avenue.
"This was a chance for people to be heard and to share why they desperately need reform," said Mike Gould, a volunteer organizer for Organizing for America — a group that backs President Barack Obama’s health-care reform efforts. "We need reform, and we need it now before Congress goes home in December."
