By Edward Epstein, CQ Staff

It’s no secret that Americans are up in arms over proposals for a $700 billion financial industry bailout, and they are letting Congress know about their dissatisfaction — in spades.

An e-mail sent in the pre-dawn hours Friday by House administrators said the computer system was straining to keep up with a tremendous volume of incoming electronic traffic.

“Engineers have verified that unusually high traffic as a result of write your representative e-mail coming via member web sites is the cause of slow response” in the computer system, a note from the chief administrative officer’s staff said.

Members across the political spectrum report heavy e-mail traffic from upset constituents.

Rep. Gary G. Miller , R-Calif., said his calls on the bailout plan “are running 150 to one against it.”

“People are looking at this as nothing but a big bailout for fat cats on Wall Street. I’m not concerned about the fat cats. I’m concerned about the people working hard to make a living or get a bank loan,” Miller said.

Democrats such as Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota also have been hearing complaints.

“They want to make sure there are checks and balances going forward,” she said. “I don’t think they much like the package as presented. I think they want us to make some changes.”