Jul 17, 2008 4:49 am US/Mountain
Michelle Obama Stumps For Husband In Colorado
DENVER (AP) ―
Michelle Obama mixed a story about how her husband, the Democratic presidential candidate asked her out, with a solemn assessment of U.S. economic and social conditions during a visit to the Denver area Wednesday.
Obama spoke before a crowd of about 150 that paid from $1,000 to $10,000 apiece at a private fundraising dinner at a downtown Denver hotel. She earlier spoke briefly to volunteers for the Democratic National Convention after landing at Centennial Airport in the south-Denver suburb of Englewood.
Jeannie Ritter, wife of Gov. Bill Ritter, greeted Obama when she landed. The two will be co-chairwomen of Delegate Service Day on the third day of the convention Aug. 25-28 in Denver.
The campaigns of Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain, the Republican candidate, are making several visits to Colorado, considered among key battleground states. Colorado is GOP-leaning, but has a Democratic governor, Legislature and elected Democrat Ken Salazar to the U.S. Senate in 2004.
During the fundraiser, Obama said the contrasts between her husband and McCain are great.
"We have one candidate who essentially is telling us every day that the world as it is just fine. That what we've been doing for the last eight years is fine," Obama said. "Stay the course. Don't make too many changes.
"And then we have this other candidate -- Barack Obama -- who is saying every day that the world as it is not right. It's not good enough," she said.
Obama rattled off a list of areas where she believes the nation has been underperforming during the two terms of President Bush: education, health care and the economy.
"I wish we had time to be divided. I wish we had time to be upset. To be angry. To be disappointed. I wish we did," Obama said. "Because if we had time for that, then things wouldn't be so bad right now. Instead, we're in a place where another four or eight years of the world as it is will devastate the life of some child."
Tom Kise, spokesman for McCain, said the Arizona senator has a plan to improve the economy by making it easier for small businesses to grow.
Obama's trip to Colorado was her first since June 2007. Besides raising money, she also did a little fence-mending by paying tribute to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who ended her candidacy in June after a hard-fought primary campaign against Barack Obama.
"We have supporters who have been behind wonderful candidates like Hillary Clinton and have brought the same passion to their work with her as they brought to the Obama campaign and we are grateful," she said.
Former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, who was national co-chairman of Clinton's campaign, was at the event.
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