So as a small business owner, I'd like to know what the stimulus plan is going to do for me personally....so what's Biden's office number?

3/2/2009 4:45:21 PM

it will raise your taxes if you even become remotely successful.

3/2/2009 4:48:08 PM

well yes, but since he specifically told people to call his office to find out how the stimulus plan will help them, I just want to know his office phone number

3/2/2009 4:49:23 PM

if there is a bridge to your small business, people will be able to safely drive over that bridge

ps

Quote :

"Phone Numbers Comments: 202-456-1111 Switchboard: 202-456-1414 FAX: 202-456-2461"

i thought you were better than this yo

3/2/2009 4:53:19 PM

What small business do you run?

3/2/2009 4:54:13 PM

that's the number for the comments line...which is an answering machine. I'm not making a comment, I'm asking a question....

And I doubt very much that if I call the switchboard and ask for Joe, that they're going to put me through...

3/2/2009 4:55:25 PM

chit chat lost its thread

3/2/2009 4:56:42 PM

No. This is not chit chat. This is a legit 'soap box' question. I want to know the direct number to reach Joe Biden.

3/2/2009 4:57:38 PM

Quote :

"chit chat lost its thread"

3/2/2009 4:58:24 PM

Calling the Office of the Vice President is not the same thing as calling Joe Biden.

3/2/2009 4:59:47 PM

well he said, "I would recommend that woman call my office directly".... so then since he's the current VP...and that's where he works...? But regardless....what's the number I'd call?

3/2/2009 5:02:27 PM

for someone who blurs her face in every photo online, you're making a lot of demands for openness

3/2/2009 5:04:24 PM

are you "that woman"

we've seen several times now where obama has had his staff meet with people after events/speeches, how are you sure "that woman" didn't get a visit from a staffer after whatever interview/speech you're referring to

3/2/2009 5:05:56 PM

He's got assistants and clerks and assistant clerks and shit to take care of this sort of thing. When you call the office of important people as an outsider not part of their company, you shouldn't be surprised if their secretary or someone else picks up. Stop being such a literalist.

3/2/2009 5:07:24 PM

seriously

did you even try calling the switchboard

if you're serious about talking to the office of the vice president, and we all know you're fucking not

they would most likely connect you either to the office or to the resource that would give you your stimulus answewr

3/2/2009 5:09:21 PM

well I'm not a publicly elected official so I don't have to be "open".

Also...maybe that woman did get a visit...but since he said, "and I will be able to guide her as to what pieces of this package would be directly helpful to her" then I too will need a visit from his office...I'm making it easy for him though and only asking him to take a phone call...

3/2/2009 5:09:24 PM

but you're not willing to pick up the phone and dial the switchboard

CLASSIC

3/2/2009 5:11:23 PM

are you finally having the realization that you aren't special? this thread never had hope

3/2/2009 5:11:24 PM

I actually DID call....and was forwarded to an answering machine...I left a message. I'll let you know when they call me back.

3/2/2009 5:12:16 PM

who did you ask to talk to

3/2/2009 5:14:16 PM

I asked to talk to the office of the VP. She asked me if I had anyone specific in mind. I said that yes, preferably the VP himself, but anyone in his office who would able to explain to me how the stimulus plan will help me specifically would be fine.

3/2/2009 5:17:19 PM

lol

i'd have forwarded you to an answering machine as well

3/2/2009 5:24:49 PM

She probably caught on that you were calling more because of some sound bite you heard about calling the Vice President and wanting to call his bluff, and less to actually get information.

3/2/2009 5:29:38 PM

Oh I see....so because I 'sounded' like I was "calling more because of some sound bite you heard about calling the Vice President and wanting to call his bluff, and less to actually get information." (which I'm guessing she knew because I was in fact, actually calling) then I'm not worthy of an answer.

You know I actually DO have a small business...and it's mostly done online so fixing the roads won't help me...so I'd legitimately like to know how this stimulus plan is going to help me. And I'd settle for 'well we're going to lower the costs of you monthly internet bill significantly' and those changes will happen soon, because we know that promising a %10 decrease over the next 7 years on my home internet bill won't do jack shit considering that I'm a small business and if I don't get help NOW my business will fail' as an answer.

Surely this would qualify as helping to stimulate small business...

3/2/2009 5:40:32 PM

nigga, you gotta cry on the phone to talk to the VP. shed some tears and see if she'll forward you to a machine that gets checked

3/2/2009 5:40:55 PM

Quote :

"Oh I see....so because I 'sounded' like I was "calling more because of some sound bite you heard about calling the Vice President and wanting to call his bluff, and less to actually get information." (which I'm guessing she knew because I was in fact, actually calling) then I'm not worthy of an answer."

In short, yes.

If you really care about the information and want to talk to someone, then change your attitude. Explain your situation very briefly and ask to speak to someone who could help explain how your online business will benefit. Don't say "Yes, preferably the Vice President," when asked who you want to talk to. If you're not someone important and you call up out of the blue asking to be connected to the Vice President, you should not be surprised if you get sent to an answering machine, because that's exactly the kind of attitude and person that the receptionist is there to screen out.

3/2/2009 5:47:31 PM

oh wait - you mean a generic stimulus bill that is supposed to address most people's issues missed a single person?

no fucking way - stop the presses - get on the phones now - alert everyone you know

i disagree with the stimulus bill as a whole but quit your whiny attitude if you happened to be overlooked

3/2/2009 5:52:34 PM

Oh....so since you heard how I asked, you can clearly make the statement that I have the wrong attitude. I specifically said that I was calling to find out how the stimulus plan would help me and my small business.

And if they look me up they'll see that I'm a registered democrat so perhaps before they start spending money on training the whitehouse switchboard operators to correctly identify my 'real' motive based on a question asked by a chick who legitimately wants to know what the bill will do for her, then I really underestimated the overwhelmingly high intelligence of the US government (and clearly this would have been in place during the Bush years too)

3/2/2009 5:53:20 PM

how about expanding rural broadband access? that will help your internet based business right?

are you still doing event planning?

3/2/2009 5:53:41 PM

Quote :

"you call up out of the blue asking to be connected to the Vice President, you should not be surprised if you get sent to an answering machine, because that's exactly the kind of attitude and person that the receptionist is there to screen out."

ding ding ding

every time i've worked for someone important, if it seemed like the person had real issues and wanted to talk to anyone that would help them, we forward them to a real person who might not be the top dawg

if someone is adamant about talking to the top dawg though, they get the top dawg



's voice mail

the one that doesn't really get checked that often





i thought you knew how the world works

3/2/2009 5:56:33 PM

Quote :

"oh wait - you mean a generic stimulus bill that is supposed to address most people's issues missed a single person? no fucking way - stop the presses - get on the phones now - alert everyone you know i disagree with the stimulus bill as a whole but quit your whiny attitude if you happened to be overlooked"

Well no...but when a question was asked by a small business owner, and nothing is known of this business owner other than it's a woman....Biden actually believes that the best way to demonstrate how to convince the general public that the plan is a positive thing is by assuming that this woman has a business in which there is only ONE WAY TO GET TO IT and it involves going over a creek whose bridge is out?

Seriously?

3/2/2009 5:56:55 PM

the dude made an if-then statement

has everyone in the fucking world forgotten what those are or something?

3/2/2009 5:57:51 PM

im really surprised mytwocents didnt learn her lesson last time she made a thinly veiled soapbox thread and called out for it

3/2/2009 6:10:44 PM

Quote :

"Oh....so since you heard how I asked, you can clearly make the statement that I have the wrong attitude. I specifically said that I was calling to find out how the stimulus plan would help me and my small business."

No, I didn't hear how you asked. But you told us how you asked.

Quote :

"I said that yes, preferably the VP himself, but anyone in his office who would able to explain to me how the stimulus plan will help me specifically would be fine."

You asked to speak to the Vice President of the United States of America. About something that any well-trained PR rep with a brain and a script could explain to you. If you didn't realize that this was something inappropriate to ask to speak to the VP directly about, then it's a fair assumption for the receptionist to make (or even an instruction that the receptionist might be explicitly given) that you're not even worth the time for the well-trained PR rep to speak to.

I'm sure they get a lot of calls to their office that are both a) legitimate, and b) don't ask to inappropriately jump up the chain of command. Your call sounds like it meets a), but try again with b) and see if you get somewhere before you make a thread about it.

3/2/2009 6:21:19 PM

does your small business website have the direct line to the business's owner?

[Edited on March 2, 2009 at 6:24 PM. Reason : DIRECT LINES, serious business]

3/2/2009 6:23:36 PM

^^well I initially said, 'someone in the VPs office'...she asked me if I had anyone specific in mind. I don't know anyone in the VPs office except for the VP and since he had suggested that people call HIS OFFICE, I didn't know what else she wanted me to answer. I specifically stated that I wanted to speak to someone who could explain to me how the stimulus bill will help ME as a small business owner. If there was a better person to speak to then perhaps Biden should have said, 'have her call the whitehouse and ask to have someone explain specifically how the bill will help them'

Seriously...I wasn't trying to 'call anyone out' I'm actually curious how all the money that we're about to spend is going to help a 'typical american' which I am.

^yes....but I'm not about to give out the URL to tww

3/2/2009 6:39:47 PM

maybe if you tell them you're a terrorist who wants secret intelligence plans they'll patch you through since that's what you think they are supposedly doing

3/2/2009 7:31:21 PM

Then next time you call, if she asks whether you have anyone specific in mind, don't say "The VP." Just say "no one in particular, just anyone who could discuss the stimulus plan's benefits to small business owners in detail with me."

Better yet, there might be information online about who the people who work in his office are. There might be someone designated as an expert or a PR person for stimulus package issues. Do a little digging on the White House website and see if you can find a name to ask for specifically.

3/2/2009 7:34:45 PM

i called apple today to ask if safari was a better browser for me but they wouldn't put me through to steve jobs

3/2/2009 7:53:36 PM

they seem to be better about responding to online requests and questions than phone. perhaps try their website.

3/2/2009 8:07:56 PM

Quote :

"chit chat lost its thread"

3/3/2009 3:37:15 AM

Clearly internet-based businesses don't get any benefit from investments in infrastructure.

3/3/2009 4:02:00 AM