Earlier today, I called Congressman Eric Massa's DC office. I expected to be on the phone for at most 90 seconds.
I explained that I didn't live in his district or even his state but that I had donated to his campaign. I went on to say that I wanted a refund of my campaign contribution because I thought I was contributing to a Democrat and that if he was voting against health care reform that must mean that Congressman Massa is not in fact a Democrat.
The staffer put me on hold for a minute. I then found myself talking to Congressman Massa.
More about my conversation with him after the jump....
Update: One more big thing I forgot to mention: The online organizing, vote counting, and vote whipping REALLY MATTER! The congressman mentioned that he had taken hundreds of calls.
Also: obligatory rec list thank you
Caveats:
This conversation happened about more than four hours ago & my recollection of the details is already sketchy. (I had extended family over & was in the midst of preparations for a family dinner.) I didn't take any notes because, well, I wasn't actually expecting to speak to Congressman Massa. I didn't make as strong a case as I wish I could have because, well, I wasn't actually expecting to speak to Congressman Massa.
I told him how disappointed I was to hear that he would be voting against the health care reform bill and that I wanted a refund of my campaign contribution. He replied that he could understand that point of view if he had campaigned in support of this particular bill, but that he had not. He stated that he had campaigned in favor of a single payer type option. He said that he was asked to sign a pledge-the Progressive Caucus pledge-and that he had said that he would hold everyone to that pledge to vote only for single payer or a robust public option. What kind of person would he be to go back on his word.
I replied that as someone who grew up without health insurance and has seen first hand what kind of medical care is available, i.e. NOT AVAILABLE, without insurance, that this issue really matters to me. I said that while I wish the bill were stronger, I didn't want our society to still be trying to pass a bill when my (currently) school-age kids are old enough to have children of their own. In the end, I said, I choose to stand with President Obama and not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Congressman Massa said something about how excessive deference to the president had gotten us all into so much trouble during the last eight years and that a lot of people who are supporting the bill wouldn't if they really knew what was in it and the impacts it would have. I shot back that the comparison between the unitary executive model and the process during the health care legislative process this time around was TOTALLY INVALID.
I asked him how he felt about making common cause with the Republicans, the party of no that is voting no because they want to see health care reform fail, President Obama fail, and the Democratic party fail. He said (paraphrase here) that it didn't matter with whom one was voting, that what mattered was the particulars of the bill. Congressman Massa said something to the effect that caring only about the letter (D or R) behind someone's name was what got us all into all this trouble.
Congressman Massa asked me a bit about the particulars of my family's situation (owner of a smallish family business, health insurance quotes that have increased anywhere from 15%-35% annually leading to our current health insurance w/$5000 deductibles). He is of the opinion that the costs to our family business will rise dramatically. I didn't really respond to that because I didn't feel prepared enough for a discussion on that level of detail.
I think we spoke for about 15 minutes. He would, I think, have been willing to talk further but I didn't feel I could productively continue the conversation at that point. He wasn't going to change his mind, I rarely if ever change my mind (just ask my family), my daughter (she of the sig line quote) needed my help with something, and there was a dinner to prepare. Besides, I didn't feel geared up for a debate about healthcare reform at that moment. Did I mention that I didn't really expect to be speaking to the Congressman?
I ended by saying that I really appreciated his willingness to engage in a real conversation with someone who was not in his state, let alone his district.
My take aways: I give Congressman Massa A LOT of credit for his willingness to have a substantive, non-boilerplate conversation with a non-constituent. Thank you, Congressman Massa. Honestly, I am still flabbergasted by that. (If I had any idea that was even a possibility, I would have prepared better for the discussion!)
I still wish he would vote for this healthcare bill. I do wish it were stronger, but really, if Speaker Pelosi is having to count every vote for this watered down version, how can one honestly think that a change as dramatic as single-payer universal healthcare would pass in this particular House of Representatives, let alone this particular Senate? I feel that this bill, while far from perfect, will give us opportunities to make it stronger in the future. I agree with President Obama when he says that the opportunity to pass legislation that will have such a positive impact on so many comes along once in a generation.
I started telling my husband about my conversation, and my daughter chimed in, "Yeah, mommy was yelling at someone on the phone today." (Oops, I don't think I was yelling, maybe just talking a little loudly.) My son immediately wanted to know who I was yelling at and why. This led to a really good discussion about talking to one's political representatives and why that's a good thing to do.
The question I wish I had asked: Would Congressman Massa (or any legislator) still vote no on this bill if s/he knew that his/her vote would decide its passage or failure?
Ughh, forgot to mention one thing: Congressman Massa is already wrong about one thing. The Stupak amendment came up, and he said that he would be voting against it. He thought the amendment would fail narrowly, IIRC.