Obama's birthday: a time to fundraise, count gray hairs
| Washington
We all know that age is just a number. But when you鈥檙e president of the United States, it鈥檚 hard to forget when that special day is approaching.
That鈥檚 particularly the case when the big day, Aug. 4, falls just three months before crucial midterm elections. Organizing for America (OFA), the grass-roots arm of the Democratic National Committee, has been using President Obama鈥檚 49th birthday as a rallying point for volunteers to gather in community centers, coffee shops, and homes to eat a little cake 鈥� and make phone calls to recruit campaign volunteers.
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鈥淭his fall, we need to get as many of the 15 million first-time voters from 2008 as possible back to the polls, and we鈥檒l need volunteers in every state to reach them,鈥� reads the e-mail from OFA under the subject line, 鈥淐an you come to a birthday party for Barack Obama?鈥�
Mr. Obama himself will be spending the day first in Washington, addressing a meeting of the AFL-CIO Executive Committee, then flying to Chicago, where he will have dinner with friends and spend the night at his house in Hyde Park. The next day, he headlines three fundraisers, including a birthday dinner at the home of billionaire real estate mogul Neil Bluhm that鈥檚 doubling as a high-dollar 鈥渇inance event鈥� for the DNC, per the Chicago Sun Times. Price tag: $30,400 a head.
Wife Michelle Obama and the girls won鈥檛 even be there. The first lady and Sasha are heading to Spain Wednesday to visit friends, and Malia is away at camp.
We know Obama鈥檚 been thinking about his birthday because he鈥檚 been talking about it. In a visit to the Tastee Sub Shop in Edison, N.J., last Wednesday, he recommended the sandwiches, but added that 鈥淚 can鈥檛 eat a 12-inch these days now that I鈥檓 49, or I will be in a week.鈥�
In a speech to the National Urban League last Thursday, he referred twice to his graying hair. 鈥淐hange is hard,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if you鈥檝e noticed. That鈥檚 why I鈥檝e got all this gray hair.鈥�
At the Tuesday briefing, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs was asked about all the gray hair comments (there was another one on Monday).
鈥淚 can鈥檛 imagine that the weight of the job doesn鈥檛 take a toll physically and mentally on anybody that does it,鈥� Mr. Gibbs said. But, he added, 鈥淚 know he greatly enjoys it, and it will just require him to get more frequent haircuts.鈥�
Huh?
Gibbs called on the next reporter, then reflected back on that last comment. 鈥淟ikely I鈥檓 going to hear about that,鈥� he said to laughter.
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