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Wow, what a day!
Yesterday, MoveOn members held 163 "Public Option
Now!" Health Care Rallies at Senate offices from Greensboro, NC to Portland, OR.
Together, we delivered our message that Americans
want health care reform with a strong public option to fully 88 senators and the media.
Check out some of the photos from the day—they're really uplifting:
Rallies like these are a uniquely effective way of getting our message out there. And the right-wingers know it—we got reports that the "tea party" crowd organized counter-rallies and tried to disrupt a number of our events.
But thanks to your work, our "Public Option Now!" message got through better than ever, on dozens of TV outlets, radio stations, and in newspapers across the country.
Here are some samples of the great press coverage:
As cars drove by honking their support, activists passed around petitions and shared testimonials on the necessity of a new public health insurance program that Americans could choose instead of private coverage on Thursday. —The Daily Texan1, Austin, TX
"It means choice, it means choice for Montanans and choice for Americans because it allows you to choose the option of privatized health care if that's what you have and that's what you like," said Moveon.org spokesperson Christina Quijano. —KULR8 TV2, Billings, MT
The rally itself featured impassioned speeches by advocates of health care reform, including nurses, a small business owner and a woman who has faced large health care costs and coverage issues since her husband became a quadriplegic in an accident 38 years ago. —Las Vegas Sun3, Las Vegas, NV
Representatives of the Senators listened to the concerns, and promised to make sure everyone in Washington D.C. knows how Idahoans are feeling. Bullock said, "We elected you, now you need to do something for us." —KIDK4, Pocatello, ID
These rallies could not have come at a more critical time. The Senate may vote as early as next week on the public health insurance option. Thanks to your actions, staff members can now report back to their senators that constituents are paying attention and demanding a strong public option.
And members from across the country have been sending in their own reports on the highlights of their local rallies. Here's what people said the best parts were:
"The testimony of a young mother how even with private health care, her son was going to die because of the dollar caps on his treatment. She was in tears through the whole thing. It tore my heart out. She showed a lot of courage and compassion. I told her so." —David W., Mill Creek, WI
"Seeing over 20 mostly Senior Americans willing to stand in 105 degree weather for 2 hours was impressive. When a lady spritzed me with her spray bottle I felt we were real community." —Maurice F., Mesa, AZ"Hearing one of our fellow demonstrators, a woman in a wheelchair who suffers with rheumatoid arthritis, articulately explain to a TV reporter why the 'public option' is necessary to lower costs, cover more people, and create a more level playing field." —Edward C., Santa Monica, CA
"[The best] moment was when a young man just graduating from college talked of his fears about not having health insurance in a couple of months ... He is terrified about it. Everyone there gave him a very big round of applause and cheers to support his standing up to speak and his becoming active on this issue. It is the young people that we have not yet seen much of a response from on this issue and yet our work now will benefit them now and in the future." —Lauren M., Madison, WI
Thank you again for taking action and making a
difference in our work for real health care reform with a strong public option.
Events like these help our champions in Congress push harder for progressive
change, and make sure wavering senators know we're counting on them to get on
board.
We have a once-in-a-generation chance to pass real health care reform
this year—and these next few weeks will be critical. We'll keep you posted as
the fight in the House and Senate ramps up in the days and weeks ahead.
Thanks for all you do.
–Nita, Ilya, Kat, Peter and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "Activists itch for health care relief," The Daily
Texan, July 10, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51610&id=16568-7248485-o4j_fCx&t=9
2. "Healthcare Rally," KULR-8 TELEVISION, July 9,
2009
http://www.kulr8.com/news/local/50411527.html
3. "Group petitions Ensign for public health care
options," Las Vegas Sun, July 9, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51611&id=16568-7248485-o4j_fCx&t=10
4. "Rally in Pocatello to show support of public
health insurance," KIDK News, July 9, 2009
http://www.kidk.com/news/50405742.html
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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to Jerry Fritz Nelson on July 10, 2009. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.
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