July 1, 2009, 1:16 pm Obama’s Health Care Town HallBy Jeff ZelenyDoug Mills/The New York Times President Obama embraced Debby Smith, a liver cancer patient, at a health care forum in Annandale, Va.ANNANDALE, Va. – Another week, another town meeting on health care. President Obama is set to arrive here shortly, in this suburban community outside of Washington, to continue his push to overhaul the nation’s health care system. The session is not broadcast on network television, unlike last week’s prime-time forum on ABC News, but rather on the White House Web site and a variety of social networking sites. At the Northern Virginia Community College, about 200 people in the studio audience have taken their seats. The president will take questions from them, as well as from people who submitted their queries through the White House’s official Facebook, You Tube and Twitter pages. It is the second online forum the White House has staged this year. In March, the president took questions from people via the Web as he was sitting in the East Wing. This time, he’s taken the show on the road. A video monitor here says, “The White House is Open for Questions.” Here on the East Coast, it starts at 1:15 p.m., and can be followed here . The White House is working to intensify a grass-roots push for its health care plan. With Congress on recess this week, the event here in Annandale is one of several intended to highlight the president’s urgent call to reduce costs to the health care system and lower the number of uninsured Americans. “One of the reasons the president is out there today is for people to get a better understanding of what his health plan will do,” said Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, briefing reporters back at the White House on Wednesday afternoon. If you’re so inclined, tuned in. The White House show is about to begin.The Republican National Committee is watching, too, and offering a live online response
July 1, 2009, 1:16 pm
ANNANDALE, Va. – Another week, another town meeting on health care.
President Obama is set to arrive here shortly, in this suburban community outside of Washington, to continue his push to overhaul the nation’s health care system. The session is not broadcast on network television, unlike last week’s prime-time forum on ABC News, but rather on the White House Web site and a variety of social networking sites.
At the Northern Virginia Community College, about 200 people in the studio audience have taken their seats. The president will take questions from them, as well as from people who submitted their queries through the White House’s official Facebook, You Tube and Twitter pages.
It is the second online forum the White House has staged this year. In March, the president took questions from people via the Web as he was sitting in the East Wing. This time, he’s taken the show on the road. A video monitor here says, “The White House is Open for Questions.”
Here on the East Coast, it starts at 1:15 p.m., and can be followed here .
The White House is working to intensify a grass-roots push for its health care plan. With Congress on recess this week, the event here in Annandale is one of several intended to highlight the president’s urgent call to reduce costs to the health care system and lower the number of uninsured Americans.
“One of the reasons the president is out there today is for people to get a better understanding of what his health plan will do,” said Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, briefing reporters back at the White House on Wednesday afternoon.
If you’re so inclined, tuned in. The White House show is about to begin.
The Republican National Committee is watching, too, and offering a live online response
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