Obama to Host Dinner for Top House Democrats

Continuing his Capitol Hill outreach, President Obama is set have dinner with the House Democratic leadership on Wednesday at the Jefferson Hotel, including Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, according to a White House official.

Most of the legislative focus early in Obama’s second term has been in the Senate. But as the president pursues a comprehensive immigration overhaul and a grand bargain on the budget, it is critical that the Democratic Party’s left flank does not abandon him.

The attendees of the dinner include Democratic Reps. Steny Hoyer, James Clyburn, Xavier Becerra, Joe Crowley, Chris Van Hollen, Rosa DeLauro, Rob Andrews, Steve Israel, and Mike Thompson, the official said.

Already, many House Democrats have agitated about the president’s willingness to cut entitlement spending in exchange for additional tax revenues. There is also growing concern about the immigration package getting tugged too far right, as Republicans are pushing for tighter border security.

The dinner is the latest in a months-long series of outreach efforts that Obama has made to lawmakers. The meal comes days after the president played golf with three senators, Democrat Mark Udall of Colorado, Republican Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Republican Bob Corker of Tennessee.

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Obama pokes fun at critics, media at annual press dinner

By Jeff Mason

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama poked fun at the media, his critics and himself on Saturday at the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner, a star-filled event where journalists and celebrities mixed with the Washington elite.

Joined at the dinner by his wife, first lady Michelle Obama, the president gently knocked Republicans for not working with him on policy priorities and made a rare reference to his race when urging the opposition party to be cooperative.

"I know Republicans are still sorting out what happened in 2012, but one thing they all agree on is they need to do a better job reaching out to minorities," Obama said.

"And look, call me self-centered, but I can think of one minority they could start with. Hello? Think of me as a trial run, you know?" he said.

Obama, a Democrat and the first black U.S. president, won re-election in November with overwhelming support from minority voters including blacks and Hispanics.

He took a swipe at people who have doubted his religion and accused him of being a radical leftist, while he made light of his graying hair.

"These days, I look in the mirror and I have to admit, I'm not the strapping young Muslim socialist that I used to be," Obama said. "Time passes. You get a little gray."

The president is a Christian who was born in Hawaii, but he included some material for so-called "birthers" who falsely assert he was born abroad.

"I'm also hard at work on plans for the Obama Library, and some have suggested that we put it in my birthplace, but I'd rather keep it in the United States," he said.

Obama made light of his own rapid rise to power by comparing himself to Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a Hispanic from Florida who is touted as a potential presidential candidate in 2016.

"One senator who has reached across the aisle recently is Marco Rubio, but I don't know about 2016. I mean, the guy has not even finished a single term in the Senate and he thinks he's ready to be president," Obama joked. "Kids these days."

Obama began running for president during his first term as a U.S. senator from Illinois.

In a room filled with journalists, the president saved some of his most biting jokes for the press.

"I know CNN has taken some knocks lately, but the fact is I admire their commitment to cover all sides of a story, just in case one of them happens to be accurate," he said, drawing applause.

"Some of my former advisors have switched over to the dark side. For example, David Axelrod now works for MSNBC, which is a nice change of pace since MSNBC used to work for David Axelrod."

Axelrod was the chief strategist for Obama's re-election campaign and a former White House adviser. MSNBC is considered to be a liberal-leaning television network.

Obama also made light of his wife's new bangs, drawing laughter from her when he showed mock pictures of himself with the same hairdo.

(Additional reporting by Elwina Nawaguna and Peter Cooney; Editing by Paul Simao)

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Next step in Obama charm offensive: Dinner with Republican senators

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will launch a new round of schmoozing with his political opponents when he sits down to dinner with a dozen Republican senators on April 10.

Obama has been trying to gain Republican cooperation on a host of items on his second-term agenda including a deficit-reduction package, an overhaul of U.S. immigration laws and a tightening of gun regulations.

Criticized in his first term for keeping his opponents at arms-length, Obama is taking a different tack in the early months of his second term.

He and a group of Republican senators had dinner at a Washington hotel earlier this month and the president then visited Capitol Hill to talk to lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

The April 10 dinner is being organized by Republican Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia, according to Isakson's office and a White House official.

(Reporting By Steve Holland; Editing by Paul Simao)

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