President Obama In Miami For Fundraisers
MIAMI (CBS4) – President Barack Obama returned to Miami Monday evening for a series of campaign fundraisers that will raise money for Democrats and his re-election campaign.
President Obama arrived in Miami shortly after 5:00 p.m. at Miami International Airport. Air Force One had to circle the airport for a bit due to thunderstorms in the area.
His first stop was at a $10,000-per-person reception at the home of former Samsonite CEO Steven Green and wife Dorothea. Green was President Bill Clinton's ambassador to Singapore.
There, he made a 15 minute speech to attendees, praising recently appointed DNC chair and South Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
"If you're in a foxhole, you want Debbie alongside you because not only is she charming and she has that dazzling smile, she's tough as nails. And that's what's needed during challenging times," Obama said.
Obama then made his way to the Adrienne Arsht Center for Performing Arts for the "Obama Victory Fund 2012 Kick-Off Reception."
"I never said this was going to be easy. This is a democracy. It's a big country and a diverse country. And our political process is messy. Yes, you don't always get 100 percent of what you want, and you make compromises. That's how the system was designed," Obama told supporters at the Arsht Center. "But what I hope all of you still feel is that for all the frustrations, for all the setbacks, for all the occasional stumbles, that what motivates us, what we most deeply cherish, that that's still within reach. That it's still possible to bring about extraordinary change. That it's still possible to make sure that the America we pass down to our kids and our grandkids is a better America than the one we inherited. I'm confident about that."
Tickets ranged in price from $250 to $2,500 depending on how close to the President you wanted to get.
Obama also attended a dinner at the Miami home of Dr. J.P. and Maggie Austin. A check for $35,800 would have gotten you a seat.
The President will spend the night in Miami and depart on Tuesday morning.
