President Obama opens his Chicago home to supporters

[bigtree]

CHICAGO - The red-brick Georgian Revival home was gleaming: An American flag extended from the porch, the evergreen trees surrounding the yard were pruned and the red impatiens and begonias were blooming. Guests mingled at tables covered with stylish lime-colored tablecloths and listened to light jazz before their host said a few words.

Just a nice summertime garden party on a Sunday — along with beefy Secret Service agents, the buzz of a motorcade waiting outside, and a black pole extending high over the corner of the property, dotted with surveillance equipment and cameras.




President Obama, center, walks through his Hyde Park neighborhood to a campaign event, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2012, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)



"Welcome to my house!" said President Barack Obama, greeting donors at his South Side home. "I have to say, the lawn hasn't looked this good in a while. But I figured, but at least Michelle figured, that if everyone was coming over we ought to neaten up a little bit."

Obama opened up his home in Chicago's Kenwood neighborhood for a marquee fundraiser, welcoming about 75 of his top donors who wished the president a belated happy birthday — No. 51 — and gave big bucks to his re-election campaign. It was part of a full day of hometown fundraising for Obama, who was expected to haul in $3.5 million to $4 million to fuel his campaign against Republican Mitt Romney.

Obama's weekend fundraising trip had all the trappings of a local homecoming, right down to the crowds gathered by the nearby Pancake House to cheer on his motorcade on Saturday night and a banner hanging on a fence a few blocks from his home that said, "Happy Birthday President Obama."


read: http://www.cnbc.com/id/48646587

[tk2kewl]

1. Did they get to ride the car elevator?

Oh, wrong guy