How to Contact the President of the United States, Senators, & Congressmen

Sometimes the Newton Falls Public Library staff members are asked similar questions by different individuals. The following queries were made in the last few days and could be answered by using one site. “What is the phone number for the White House?” “Where can I send a letter to the President?” “How can I have the White House send a letter of recognition for special events like a 50th wedding anniversary or a 100th birthday?” “I want to contact my senator and representative. Where can I find that information?” www.whitehouse.gov is a wonderful resource for such questions.

At www.whitehouse.gov/contact you can find the following phone numbers - Comments: 202-456-1111, Switchboard: 202-456-1414 and FAX: 202-456-2461. At this site you are also able to contact President Obama and his staff electronically using the online form. For those preferring to contact them through the mail, the address is The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500.

The Office of Presidential Correspondence handles letters of greeting to United States citizens. The website www.About.com gives the following detailed instructions on how to ask for letters from the White House. Greetings can be requested for “a 50th, 60th, 70th or later wedding anniversary, birthday greetings for individuals turning 80 or older or veterans turning 70 or older, wedding (send your request after the event), baby's birth or adoption of a child, retirement after at least 30 years on the same job, Eagle Scout Award, Girl Scout Gold Award, or Bar/Bat Mitzvah or equivalent religious occasion. When you make a request, be sure to send it so that it is received at least six (6) weeks in advance of the event date. (Greetings are generally not sent after the event date, except for wedding congratulations and newborn acknowledgments.) Include the name and home address of honoree(s), form of address (Mr., Ms., Mrs., Dr., Miss, etc.) exact date of occasion (month, day, year), age (birthdays) or number of years of marriage, your (the requestor's) name and daytime phone number, any specific mailing instructions if other than to honoree's address,” and for a wedding include couple's married names and current or new address). Send the required information to the White House Greeting Office by mail or fax (address and fax number above). About.com notes that the office is presently swamped with requests and it is currently taking several months for the request to reach the office and to be mailed out.

Besides information about the current administration, this site also includes facts about all the presidents and first ladies; the White House; the executive, legislative and judicial branches of our government; and other links to resources such as the Senate, House of Representatives, CIA World Factbook, and USA.gov.