Jul 23, 2009 11:31 am US/Central
President Obama Returns To Chicago For Fundraisers
President Obama Will Appear At Fundraiser At Hyatt Regency, Dinner At Home Of Penny Pritzker
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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President Barack Obama (File)
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President Barack Obama came back home to Chicago on Thursday to speak at a fundraiser downtown following a private dinner.
He sought a hometown boost -- his poll numbers have been slipping.
The tough battle to reform our health care system is taking a toll on the president's once sky-high job approval ratings. While still positive overall, on the health issue, some surveys indicate more Americans disapprove of what he's trying to do than approve. Before getting here, the president was on the road today, campaign-style.
At a Shaker Heights, Ohio, town hall meeting, Obama confronted what seem to be growing doubts about the cost of his proposed health system reforms and their impact on patient care. And he acknowledged that Congress may miss his deadline for action.
"We may not be able to get the bill out of the Senate by the end of August, or the beginning of August," Obama said. "That's OK. I just want people to keep on working."
Home town Democrats planned to see the president Thursday night, as he raises money for the national Democratic Party, remain confident that a bill will pass.
Also confident that Congress will ultimately send a major health system reform package to the president's desk was Gov. Pat Quinn.
"The battle for Medicare wasn't easy, there was a lot of criticism," Quinn said. "I think the battle in this decade, this time for true health care reform, is going to be a tough one. But I would say to the president, 'Stay the course.'"
One of two fundraisers Obama attended was at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, 151 E. Wacker Drive. Members of the Chicago Bulls were among those expected there. Tickets for the Democratic National Committee fundraiser ranged from $250 to $2,500.
Earlier, Obama was at the North Side home of his campaign finance chair, Penny Pritzker. She and 100 big donors, most paying $15,000 a head, had to wait, while a beaming Barack Obama enjoyed a big screen replay of highlights from that historic perfect game by White Sox pitching ace Mark Buehrle. Obama is a Sox fan.
"The lesson is, you need your team, no matter how good you are," Pritzker said.
Sources in the kitchen said the $15,000-a-plate buffet dinner menu included baby lamb rack, beef tenderloin, ahi tuna and crab cakes among many other things, with a similarly lavish dessert menu.
"You don't pay $15,000 for a dinner," Norman Bender of Woodbridge, Conn. "We spoke to the President of the United States, a sitting president. I believe a person who'll prove to be one of the great presidents."
This is apparently only the second political fundraiser that President Obama has held since he took office, after he raised about $1 billion in his campaign.
Because of the fundraising nature of his trip, Obama is expected to reimburse the White House for travel.
CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery contributed to this report.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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