Last night, the instant that President Obama asked Americans to call their representatives to show support for his debt ceiling vision, Twitter users wished good luck to congressional interns, imagining a day of extra president-inspired calls. By the looks of the clogged telephone line reports and crashed websites, it certainly doesn't seem like a pleasant day at the office on Capitol Hill. From Roll Call earlier this morning:

"Due to the high volume of external calls, House telephone circuits serving 202-225-XXXX phone numbers are near capacity resulting in outside callers occasionally getting busy signals," according to an email sent to House staffers from the call center.

Last night after the address, National Journal checked in on the websites of House Speaker Boehner, Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, and Rep. Michele Bachmann--finding "Server is too busy" responses on blank screens. At the same time as the call-your-congressman debt ceiling pleas arrive, CUNY professor Jeff Jarvis's populist hashtag #fuckyouwashington has heated up on Twitter and was just featured on CBS News The Early Show this morning.

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at ehayden at nationaljournal dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Erik Hayden