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Drunk Dial Congress website thrives as government shutdown drags on
Website set up by mobile advertising company connects callers, sober or not, with congressmen's essential employees
Amanda Holpuch
theguardian.com, Friday 11 October 2013 16.14 EDT
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, where Congress and Senate failed to agree a deal to prevent the US federal government shutting down.
Congress is currently less popular than toenail fungus and the band Nickelback. Photograph: Jim Bourg/Reuters
"Mad at Congress over the shutdown? Have a drink and tell them."
This is the simple recommendation put forward by the website Drunk Dial Congress, which provides a service to connect frustrated citizens and furloughed employees with a random member of Congress.
Enter your phone number on the website and the service will call you, then connect you to the office of a random member of Congress. That call is then fielded by an employee, deemed "essential" enough to remain on duty, who will nonetheless not be getting paid until the shutdown ends.
The site also provides a list of topics that people can attempt to discuss once they are connected with a congressperson.
At 1pm on Friday – sober – I tested the service. It connected me to the Michigan Republican Mike Rogers' office twice, to three other Republican offices and to one Democrat.
When I could not come up with a local zip code to mark my complaint, each of the employees recommended I contact my local representative. The office of the South Carolina Republican Mick Mulvaney also said I could call Mulvaney's DC office, which is handling shutdown complaints.
A representative at the office of the Missouri Democrat Emanuel Cleaver told me she was not familiar with the Drunk Dial Congress website but understood why any individual would be upset with the shutdown.
"We're watching just like you," she said.
The essential employee said Cleaver's office had not received many calls about the shutdown, but added that she expected Republican offices were getting more calls.
"It is important that Americans call their congressman," she said.
Polls show Congress to be currently less popular than hemorrhoids, toenail fungus, dog poop and the band Nickelback.
A mobile advertising company, Revolution Messaging, created Drunk Dial Congress in order to give people space to vent their frustration.
"We started the site because everyone at the firm has a friend that has been furloughed, and we thought this would be a great way for them (and others) to spend their newly found free time," said Revolution Messaging's Keegan Goudiss, in an email. "Also, we hoped this would get others who don't generally call Congress, to call in and vent their frustrations with the shutdown."
He said the site has seen nearly 45,000 calls and is averaging about 1,400 calls per hour.
Drunk Dial Congress website thrives as government shutdown drags on
Website set up by mobile advertising company connects callers, sober or not, with congressmen's essential employees
Amanda Holpuch
theguardian.com, Friday 11 October 2013 16.14 EDT
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, where Congress and Senate failed to agree a deal to prevent the US federal government shutting down.
Congress is currently less popular than toenail fungus and the band Nickelback. Photograph: Jim Bourg/Reuters
"Mad at Congress over the shutdown? Have a drink and tell them."
This is the simple recommendation put forward by the website Drunk Dial Congress, which provides a service to connect frustrated citizens and furloughed employees with a random member of Congress.
Enter your phone number on the website and the service will call you, then connect you to the office of a random member of Congress. That call is then fielded by an employee, deemed "essential" enough to remain on duty, who will nonetheless not be getting paid until the shutdown ends.
The site also provides a list of topics that people can attempt to discuss once they are connected with a congressperson.
At 1pm on Friday – sober – I tested the service. It connected me to the Michigan Republican Mike Rogers' office twice, to three other Republican offices and to one Democrat.
When I could not come up with a local zip code to mark my complaint, each of the employees recommended I contact my local representative. The office of the South Carolina Republican Mick Mulvaney also said I could call Mulvaney's DC office, which is handling shutdown complaints.
A representative at the office of the Missouri Democrat Emanuel Cleaver told me she was not familiar with the Drunk Dial Congress website but understood why any individual would be upset with the shutdown.
"We're watching just like you," she said.
The essential employee said Cleaver's office had not received many calls about the shutdown, but added that she expected Republican offices were getting more calls.
"It is important that Americans call their congressman," she said.
Polls show Congress to be currently less popular than hemorrhoids, toenail fungus, dog poop and the band Nickelback.
A mobile advertising company, Revolution Messaging, created Drunk Dial Congress in order to give people space to vent their frustration.
"We started the site because everyone at the firm has a friend that has been furloughed, and we thought this would be a great way for them (and others) to spend their newly found free time," said Revolution Messaging's Keegan Goudiss, in an email. "Also, we hoped this would get others who don't generally call Congress, to call in and vent their frustrations with the shutdown."
He said the site has seen nearly 45,000 calls and is averaging about 1,400 calls per hour.
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