Obama to hold call with supporters

Obama will hold a conference call with supporters

Seeking to recapture the energy of his campaign organization, President Barack Obama is holding “a live strategy meeting” on health care — online and via conference call — with grass-roots supporters on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. Eastern.

The Organizing for America National Health Care Forum is being held by the successor to Obama's campaign organization, now a project of the Democratic National Committee.

The call will come just the day after Obama holds a nationwide conference call with liberal and progressive faith organizations, which are organizing home and congregational meetings for groups to listen in. 

David Plouffe, who was campaign manager of Obama for America, wrote in a Tuesday afternoon message to the campaign’s e-mail list of more than 13 million names: “The president will update us on the fight to pass real health insurance reform — what's happening in D.C. and what's happening around the country. He'll lay out our strategy and message going forward and answer questions from supporters like you. And we'll unveil the next actions we'll organize together.” 

Supporters are invited to “R.S.V.P. and submit a question for the president.” 

“We'll provide you with a Web address where you can watch the entire meeting live online,” the message says. 

Those who can’t watch online are invited to participate by phone: “We will call you at the phone number you submit shortly before the forum begins — please make sure that you register with a valid phone number, preferably a land line, to ensure the best experience.”

Plouffe’s message continues: “The President wrote to us a few weeks ago to ask us to go the extra mile this month in the fight for health insurance reform. And so far, you've stepped up in a big way: Last week, an astounding 60,000 Organizing for America volunteers stopped by representatives' and senators' local offices. You told your health care stories to staffers and members of Congress — of losing insurance after getting laid off, of being denied coverage upon finding out about a serious illness. And you thanked those supporting real health insurance reform for all the work they've done so far.

“But these local office visits were only part of the story. The D.C. media has been trumpeting coverage of town halls disrupted by angry opposition to reform. But the reality on the ground is very different. Organizing for America members are showing up in huge numbers at these meetings all across the country — outnumbering opponents of reform, often by overwhelming margins.

“You've organized 11,906 local events in all 50 states — from press conferences to community discussions — since we launched our big campaign for reform in June. And you've made hundreds of thousands of calls to Congress.

“Your work so far has been incredible. But the special interests and partisan attack groups who oppose reform will not let up, and they will tell whatever lies they can to spread fear. There's a lot more work for all of us to do. This Thursday's meeting is our chance to huddle as a team, get the latest information and talk about how we're going to achieve this victory. You don't want to miss it.”

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