Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
First lady Michelle Obama vowed Monday to "take no prisoners" as she and her husband launch an unprecedented bid for Chicago's 2016 Olympic bid.Obama heads to Copenhagen Oct. 2 for a one-day trip.
"It's a battle -- we're going to win -- take no prisoners," the first lady said with a smile at a roundtable discussion with reporters in the White House State Dining Room.
She compared the intense lobbying effort to the 2008 presidential campaign, noting that in the election campaign, a lot of voters made their decision in the final days. She said members of the International Olympic Committee may do the same.
"And our view is, we're not taking a chance," she said. "We're just not going to assume that the bids -- that the decisions are made, and so that no matter what the outcome is, we'll feel as a country, as a team, that we've done everything that we can to bring it home." CNN
First lady and Windy City native Michelle Obama will lead a delegation to Denmark next month in a final push for Chicago's Olympic bid. But her husband, immersed in the battle for health care reform, remains noncommittal on making the trip.
"It is with great pride that I will go to Copenhagen to make the case for the United States to host the 2016 Olympics," Michelle Obama said in a statement Friday. "There is no doubt in my mind that Chicago would offer the world a fantastic setting for these historic games, and I hope that the Olympic torch will have the chance to burn brightly in my hometown." Read more at Lynn Sweet
Just a quick post to advise that we granted an authorization under Section 3 of the President’s Ethics Executive Order to Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett to lead the White House's effort to support Chicago's bid to secure the 2016 Olympics.
The President promised during the campaign that staff would not work on contracts or regulations directly related to their former employers. We have captured that promise in Paragraph 2 of our revolving door rules, which applies to non-lobbyists. Valerie previously served as Vice Chair of Chicago 2016, the non-profit entity responsible for the Chicago bid. Although Chicago 2016 was not her "former employer" in traditional terms, the term "former employer" in the President's Order encompasses entities that appointees served as directors or officers, as Valerie did here. (To be clear, Valerie was not a lobbyist for Chicago 2016, and this waiver has nothing to do with lobbying.)
We decided that a waiver of Paragraph 2 was in the public interest in order to help bring the Olympics back to the United States. Valerie’s past experience with Chicago 2016 makes her ideal to work with the city and its bid committee to help win the Olympics for the U.S., with the many benefits that would bestow. In her time working with the City of Chicago on its bid, she developed knowledge about the process that will make her a powerful advocate and liaison. Although Valerie previously volunteered with Chicago 2016, she has no continuing financial relationship with them. Since the Administration already plans on vigorously supporting the United States’ sole 2016 Olympic bid, we felt that letting Valerie lead our efforts was strongly in the public interest. The authorization can be found here (pdf). WH blog
NBC: The committee hoping to bring the 2016 Olympics to Chicago has an early commitment from President Barack Obama to be in Copenhagen for its final presentation and the International Olympic Committee vote.
Pat Ryan, chairman of the Chicago 2016 bid, said Monday that Obama plans to attend the meeting in October. Heads of state have been present at meetings more frequently in the past few years. When London overcame favorite Paris to land the 2012 Games, a strong, in-person push by British Prime Minister Tony Blair was viewed as one of the reasons.