Obama launches 'charm offensive' on Capitol Hill. Does it have a chance? (+video)
President Obama begins meetings with lawmakers Tuesday to discuss everything from deficits to guns. He is not known for cultivating working relationships on the Hill, and at the same time, GOP congressional leadership has been locked in opposition.
Washington
Just as he did at the start of his first term, President Obama is heading up to Capitol Hill to make a rare, personal appeal to lawmakers, on their own turf, for an ambitious agenda.
But this time, lawmakers have a four-year record of negotiations with a president not known for cultivating working relationships on Capitol Hill. Conversely, he's encountered a GOP congressional leadership locked in opposition.
This week’s new “charm offensive” is a bid to reach below the leadership level on Capitol Hill and, if possible, change the tone of relations with Congress – or, at least, the perception of a White House that functions mainly in campaign mode.
“The president’s overtures, while they are long overdue, are certainly welcome," says Sen. Susan Collins (R) of Maine, who has been a key player in many bipartisan deals in the Senate.
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