MoveOn members made big news yesterday

Dear MoveOn member,

This week, MoveOn members were all over the news as we launched the next phase of our campaign holding Republican officials accountable for blocking health care for millions of Americans.

MoveOn members in key states from Nebraska to Florida unveiled creative billboards, jammed governors' phone lines, held press conferences, and barraged Twitter handles to call out Republicans who are standing in the way of Medicaid expansion. And we were heard: Over two dozen local, state, and national outlets covered this campaign; national celebrities weighed in; and key decision-makers showed they were listening.¹

Take a look at some of the billboards, all inspired by state tourist industry themes, that went up in six states yesterday thanks to small-dollar donations from MoveOn members like you:

Putting these up in state capitals and on major highways in states where Republican governors like Scott Walker, Rick Perry, and Bobby Jindal—all Tea Partiers with presidential ambitions—are refusing federal Medicaid expansion money was the next step in our campaign to call out Republicans for denying, in total, more than 5 million Americans access to quality health care.

Gauging the amount of media so far, the campaign is gaining steam. Everyone from arch-conservative Grover Norquist to progressive powerhouse Howard Dean is tweeting about this campaign.² To build on this momentum, we need to ramp up our campaign to expand Medicaid before more state legislatures start adjourning.

Can you chip in $3 to spread our Medicaid expansion campaign to more states in the next two weeks?

Thanks to their strong campaigning, MoveOn members have been all over the news this week.

In Tallahassee, Florida, the local ABC affiliate featured MoveOn member Caroline Rone in a seven-minute interview the day before her press conference outside Governor Rick Scott's office. She had this to say about Gov. Scott: "We voted him in for the best interests of our Floridians. I don't see any best interests going on here for me or any other Floridian .... How can you turn away so many people that need medical coverage?"³

In Lincoln, Nebraska—where the Legislature will vote in the next three weeks on Medicaid expansion—ABC 8 featured MoveOn's press conference and the issue of Medicaid expansion in a five-minute long segment where it cited the billboard as an attack on Governor Dave Heineman, with one speaker challenging Nebraska Republicans to, "explain to the working low income constituents why turning away $2 billion in federal money was better than providing them with the basics to a healthy life."⁴

Sharp billboards combined with incredible MoveOn members are gaining serious attention.

If we can raise $100,000 in the next 48 hours, we can get media-grabbing campaigns like this up in a bunch more states—keeping Medicaid expansion for millions a real possibility, and getting leaders like Caroline—and their entire campaigns—featured on local news across the country.

Can you chip in $3 right now so we can ramp up our campaign while it's got some juice?

Together, MoveOn members are pushing every angle to make Medicaid expansion a reality—challenging stubborn governors, lobbing calls at state representatives and senators, making Medicaid an election year topic, and pushing big tactics to keep this issue in the media.

We can win Medicaid expansion, and make Republican governors pay the price for playing politics with their residents' lives.

Thanks for all you do.

–Victoria, Rosy, Mark, Manny, and the rest of the team

P.S. Tuesday, legislators in Arkansas voted to extend their version of Medicaid expansion, protecting health care access for more than 96,000 people, and we can make this a reality for another 50,000 people in Maine and New Hampshire as early as next week.⁵ Can you chip in to ramp up our Medicaid campaigns in these states?

Sources:

1. "MoveOn targets GOP governors over Medicaid," The Hill, March 3, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=297220&id=92711-10220574-v5ap3Zx&t=7

2. "@maravillage44 Actually the broke states are those who have been raising taxes. CA, IL, MD, NY....vs. TX, FL, WS," Grover Norquist (@GroverNorquist), March 3, 2014
https://twitter.com/GroverNorquist/status/440511814561189888

"Welcome to Scott Walker's Wisconsin: http://bit.ly/1ookqw0," Gov. Howard Dean (@GovHowardDean), March 5, 2014
https://twitter.com/GovHowardDean/status/441239711860813826

3. "Watch: Move On. Org Interview with Caroline Rone," WTXL-TV, March 3, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=297241&id=92711-10220574-v5ap3Zx&t=8

4. "Billboard attacks Gov. Heineman's refusal to expand Medicaid," KLKN-TV, March 4, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=297242&id=92711-10220574-v5ap3Zx&t=9

5. "Arkansas Compromise Medicaid Expansion Plan Stays Alive," The Huffington Post, March 4, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=297240&id=92711-10220574-v5ap3Zx&t=10

Want to support our work? MoveOn Civic Action is entirely funded by our 8 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

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