President Barack Obama takes his leave after speaking at a fundraiser for Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., left, in Stamford, Conn., Friday, Oct. 23, 2009. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

President Visits Connecticut for Campaign Fundraiser for Dodd

By SUSAN HAIGH
AP Political Writer
     STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) _ President Barack Obama urged Connecticut's wealthy hedge fund and Wall Street executives on Friday to ``join us, don't fight us'' as his administration seeks to reform the financial industry.
     Obama spoke in Stamford at a fundraiser for Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd, who is facing a tough re-election fight next year.
     Obama noted that several financial industry executives may be at the $1,000-per-plate dinner.
     ``We came very close to a Great Depression,'' he said, adding that the United States must never again be so close to disaster because of the action of reckless investors.
     ``Join us, don't fight us,'' Obama said. ``Join us in passing what are necessary reforms. It is important for our country and in the long run it will be good for your industry to have a level playing field.''
     Obama credited Dodd for his role in pushing through banking and credit card industry reforms, as well as being a driving force for Obama's universal health care proposal.
     ``Chris knows how to get things done in Washington,'' Obama said. ``That's why he's currently leading the fight on not one, but on two of the most important issues that we face today and two of the biggest priorities in my agenda.''
     The fundraiser is expected to raise $1 million for Dodd's re-election campaign, the state Democratic Party and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
     Outside the Hilton Hotel, supporters and protesters shouted to make themselves heard. Some protesters carried ``Dump Dodd'' signs and had brought a white coffin to protest Obama's universal health insurance plan.
     Art McNally, 69, of Woodbury, was among the protesters. He said he's concerned about the cost of Obama's proposals, which he said Dodd is helping push through Congress.
     ``It's my children and grandchildren, their future, that they're mortgaging,'' he said.
     But supporters waving American flags were excited for Obama's first visit to Connecticut since being elected president.
     Paula Daniel of Stamford said she supports Obama's health plan because she's been out of work since April. She has no health insurance and recently paid $600 to doctors after spraining her ankle.
     ``The reason why I came out is because I'm struggling,'' she said. ``The least we should be entitled to is some health insurance.''
     Before the stop, Obama and Dodd made a quick visit to Eastern Land Management, a Stamford landscaping company that recently negotiated a loan through the Small Business Administration to buy land for a new headquarters in Stamford.
     Company president Bruce T. Moore Sr. gave Obama and Dodd a tour of the cinderblock garage and discussed the landscaping company, which employs about 60 people.
     ``These guys look like they're working hard,'' Obama said, before posing for a photo with workers and leaving for the fundraiser.
     Moore said it was an honor to meet Obama, even though the visit lasted just a few minutes. ``It was whirlwind,'' he said.
     Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, took on a high-profile role in Congress this year by sitting in for the late Sen. Ted Kennedy while the Senate debated Obama's health insurance plan.
     But he faces a tough re-election campaign next year. Dodd has been struggling for months with low approval numbers in the wake of the faltering economy and controversy surrounding his mortgage refinancing agreement with Countrywide Financial Corp.
     A Quinnipiac University Poll conducted in early September showed 49 percent of Connecticut voters disapproved of his job performance while 43 percent approved. And though he continues to trail former Republican U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons by five percentage points, the poll marked a slight improvement for Dodd.
     In April, 58 percent of voters disapproved of how Dodd was handling his job; 33 percent approved.
     Another Republican challenger, former World Wrestling Entertainment executive Linda McMahon, is spending millions of her own fortune in a high-profile challenge to Dodd. She ran a one-day television ad on local affiliates Friday, criticizing Obama's visit as a ``pat on the back from Washington'' that she says Dodd doesn't deserve.

     (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)