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News :: Elections & Legislation

U.S. House limits incoming e-mail

WASHINGTON -- An unprecedented number of hits on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Web site has forced a limit to be placed on the number of e-mails coming into the system in the wake of Monday’s vote rejecting a $700-billion rescue bill for the nation’s financial institutions.
Jeff Ventura, spokesman for the House’s Office of the Chief Administration Officer, said pressure on the system has been building since the weekend, when the text of the bailout bill was placed on the system and touched off worldwide interest. By Monday’s vote, millions of people had accessed the mechanism on the Web site that allows a user to write to his or her congressman or congresswoman -- so many that it is was difficult or impossible even to get onto the system or a member’s Web site.

It continued today, and led to officials deciding to limit the number of e-mails coming in so the system would not crash. It means that once too many e-mails are sent, a link kicks in that asks people to try again later.

The decision to put a limit in place was first reported today by the Washington newsletter The Hill.

“We’ve never had anything like this,” said Ventura.

He said he could not tell for sure how many hits have come through the House Web site over the past three days -- he likened that to counting drops of water in a tidal wave before it hits you -- but said they are certainly in the millions.
 
 

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