Obama defends record, tries to reignite Democrats

By Baird Helgeson

President Obama spent the second day of his visit Minnesota visit offering a strong defense of his record and spark some energy in Democrats as they head into a high-stakes election season.

“Your cares and your concerns are my own, and your hopes for your kids and your grandkids are my own,” he told a crowd of 2,000 people gathered at Lake Harriet on Friday. “And I’m always going to be working to restore the American Dream for everybody who’s willing to work for it. And I am not going to get cynical; I’m staying hopeful, and I hope you do too.”

Obama is trying to keep the U. S. Senate in Democratic hands in the coming election. Losing the Senate would be a major blow to any accomplishments he hopes to achieve in the final two years of his term.

Republicans are trying to frame Obama as out of touch with average Americans and are highlighting new data showing sagging growth in the U.S. economy.

“Instead of coming to Minnesota to listen and consider a different approach on the struggling economy, it’s clear President Obama’s visit is all about doubling down on his failed, partisan agenda and pumping up Democrats ahead of a tough midterm election,” said Republican National Committee spokesman Michael Short."

Republicans have also tried to highlight that the Twin Cities mother who has come to embody the trip for the president had been a Democratic campaign worker in Washington State.

Dayton came to Minnesota after Twin Cities’ mother Rebekah Erler wrote him a letter about the hardships of raising a family.

Obama had lunch with Erler on Thursday and sprinkled anecdotes through her life throughout her speech.

“It’s amazing what you can bounce back from when you have to,” she wrote to the president. “We’re a strong, tight-knit family who has made it through some very, very hard times.”

Obama took that personal anecdote to make a larger statement about the country.

“And that describes the American people,” he said. “We, too, are a strong, tight-knit family who has made it through some very, very hard times.”
The President's Remarks at Lake Harriet Band Shell