English subtitles for clip: File:Inside the White House- Letters to the President.webm
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1 00:00:04,133 --> 00:00:09,203 (birds chirping) 2 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:14,170 The President: These letters, I think, do more to keep me in touch with what's 3 00:00:14,166 --> 00:00:16,696 happening around the country than just about anything else. 4 00:00:16,700 --> 00:00:21,530 (birds chirping) 5 00:00:21,533 --> 00:00:24,663 Some of them are funny, some of them are angry, 6 00:00:24,667 --> 00:00:32,637 a lot of them are sad or frustrated about their current situation. 7 00:00:32,633 --> 00:00:37,333 Mr. Kelleher: In his first week as President, he asked for ten letters every 8 00:00:37,333 --> 00:00:42,733 day and every day since, we've given it to him. 9 00:00:42,734 --> 00:00:49,964 (music playing) 10 00:00:49,967 --> 00:00:54,167 We get 65,000 paper letters every week, 11 00:00:54,166 --> 00:00:58,536 we get something like 100,000 e-mails, 1,000 faxes, 12 00:00:58,533 --> 00:01:02,463 2,500 to 3,500 calls per day. 13 00:01:02,467 --> 00:01:07,737 And our job is to take all that information in, to do it -- 14 00:01:07,734 --> 00:01:09,564 the best analysis we can about what we're hearing from the 15 00:01:09,567 --> 00:01:12,167 public and respond individually to all those folks so they know 16 00:01:12,166 --> 00:01:13,566 that the President is listening. 17 00:01:13,567 --> 00:01:23,637 (music playing) 18 00:01:23,633 --> 00:01:29,133 Anyone that sends a message to us, it comes into our offices, 19 00:01:29,133 --> 00:01:32,433 our staff sorts through them, they identify those that meet 20 00:01:32,433 --> 00:01:35,163 our three tests: Are they something that's representative 21 00:01:35,166 --> 00:01:37,466 of the mail that's coming in, is it representative of something 22 00:01:37,467 --> 00:01:40,467 in the news, and is it something that's a compelling message? 23 00:01:40,467 --> 00:01:43,067 They pile that mail together; some of it ends up here on my desk. 24 00:01:43,066 --> 00:01:45,396 (music playing) 25 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:48,670 I sort through it, categorize it by issue, 26 00:01:48,667 --> 00:01:52,467 and then every day I go through them and pick the ten that best 27 00:01:52,467 --> 00:01:56,097 represent what's happening right now. 28 00:01:56,100 --> 00:01:59,530 It's a good dialogue -- a direct relationship between 29 00:01:59,533 --> 00:02:02,133 constituents who have these concerns and the President who 30 00:02:02,133 --> 00:02:05,103 desperately wants to get those messages. 31 00:02:05,100 --> 00:02:06,900 The President's talked about being in a bubble, 32 00:02:06,900 --> 00:02:09,670 and our job is to make sure that he gets out of it every day. 33 00:02:09,667 --> 00:02:15,397 (music playing) 34 00:02:15,400 --> 00:02:16,400 Hey, Joni. 35 00:02:16,400 --> 00:02:17,400 >> Hey, Mike. 36 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:18,400 Mr. Kelleher: How you doing? 37 00:02:18,400 --> 00:02:19,400 >> Great, how're you doing? 38 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:20,400 Mr. Kelleher: Good. 39 00:02:20,400 --> 00:02:21,400 How's everybody doing? 40 00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:22,400 >> Thank you. 41 00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:23,400 Everyone's doing well. 42 00:02:23,400 --> 00:02:26,570 (music playing) 43 00:02:26,567 --> 00:02:27,567 >> Hey, Katie. 44 00:02:27,567 --> 00:02:28,567 Ms. Johnson: Thank you. 45 00:02:28,567 --> 00:02:29,567 So this is for tomorrow? 46 00:02:29,567 --> 00:02:30,567 >> Yep. 47 00:02:30,567 --> 00:02:31,567 Ms. Johnson: Okay. 48 00:02:31,567 --> 00:02:32,567 >> Is that good? 49 00:02:32,567 --> 00:02:33,567 Ms. Johnson: Yep. 50 00:02:33,567 --> 00:02:34,567 I'll give it to him. 51 00:02:34,567 --> 00:02:36,867 He probably replies to somewhere between three and four a night, 52 00:02:36,867 --> 00:02:39,667 so over the course of the week, you're writing 15 to 20 letters. 53 00:02:39,667 --> 00:02:40,697 So he writes a lot. 54 00:02:40,700 --> 00:02:42,600 And he hand writes every single one of them. 55 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:44,270 Some are longer, some are shorter, 56 00:02:44,266 --> 00:02:45,496 and the issues totally vary. 57 00:02:45,500 --> 00:02:52,700 (music playing) 58 00:02:52,700 --> 00:02:54,900 The President: Lately, I've been getting a lot of health care letters and this 59 00:02:54,900 --> 00:02:56,770 is a good example. 60 00:02:56,767 --> 00:02:59,497 "Dear Mr. Obama, my son-in-law, age 42, 61 00:02:59,500 --> 00:03:02,430 had a heart valve replaced two years ago. 62 00:03:02,433 --> 00:03:06,933 His wife and two children pay $1,200 per month for health insurance. 63 00:03:06,934 --> 00:03:13,234 They cannot get another provider because he has a pre-existing condition. 64 00:03:13,233 --> 00:03:16,733 He's now unemployed, so my husband and myself are helping them. 65 00:03:16,734 --> 00:03:21,604 We're in our mid-60s and this is draining our retirement." 66 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:26,430 There's so many letters like that that I'm receiving every day. 67 00:03:26,433 --> 00:03:28,503 You know, here's another one. 68 00:03:28,500 --> 00:03:33,200 A woman whose husband retired from AT&T at 61 is waiting to 69 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:35,870 get on Medicare. 70 00:03:35,867 --> 00:03:39,597 You now have the company in negotiations with the union and 71 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:45,070 may decide to stop health care for retirees. 72 00:03:45,066 --> 00:03:49,296 Got another one, an antique business in Alabama, 73 00:03:49,300 --> 00:03:54,800 they are on the verge of losing their business because they just 74 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:57,730 can't afford to pay the premiums -- 75 00:03:57,734 --> 00:04:02,464 their premiums increased $70 per month just this month. 76 00:04:02,467 --> 00:04:06,997 So a lot of the stories are heartbreaking. 77 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:10,530 People who work hard -- a lot of times they'll say, 78 00:04:10,533 --> 00:04:12,663 "I've never written to a President before, 79 00:04:12,667 --> 00:04:17,797 I'm not looking for a handout, all I want is just a fair shake in." 80 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:21,830 And it ends up being a powerful motivator for me when we try to 81 00:04:21,834 --> 00:04:25,504 move this health agenda forward. 82 00:04:25,500 --> 00:04:28,770 Now, some of them are more cheerful and, you know, 83 00:04:28,767 --> 00:04:30,597 this one for example. 84 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:32,870 "With all the huge money difficulties facing our country, 85 00:04:32,867 --> 00:04:37,367 I thought you might like to see how someone spent their $250 86 00:04:37,367 --> 00:04:39,937 stimulus money. 87 00:04:39,934 --> 00:04:42,864 Thank you for all the pleasures from tending my raised bed and 88 00:04:42,867 --> 00:04:44,667 from the vegetables I hope to enjoy." 89 00:04:44,667 --> 00:04:51,167 So she set up a vegetable garden and she sent me a picture. 90 00:04:51,166 --> 00:04:53,666 There's a beautiful letter that I got just a couple of days ago 91 00:04:53,667 --> 00:04:58,937 I'm going to be responding -- from a woman who had found a 92 00:04:58,934 --> 00:05:03,304 letter and she's forwarded it to me, 93 00:05:03,300 --> 00:05:08,870 a letter from her father when he was fighting in World War II. 94 00:05:08,867 --> 00:05:11,897 She had just been born and he had just gotten news of her 95 00:05:11,900 --> 00:05:15,770 birth and he sent this letter, "My Dearest Daughter..." 96 00:05:15,767 --> 00:05:21,037 And explained what he was doing in Europe during World War II 97 00:05:21,033 --> 00:05:24,363 and why this was so important and what the country meant to 98 00:05:24,367 --> 00:05:27,337 him and that someday she'd be old enough to read it and 99 00:05:27,333 --> 00:05:30,263 understand why this was so important. 100 00:05:30,266 --> 00:05:32,166 You know, you get letters like that and it -- 101 00:05:32,166 --> 00:05:36,466 it gives you a sense of what's best about America and inspires 102 00:05:36,467 --> 00:05:39,397 you, and makes you want to work that much harder to make sure 103 00:05:39,400 --> 00:05:44,800 that that -- that spirit is reflected in our government.