Free Republic

President Obama and Republican senators had a “good exchange of ideas” this evening during their roughly two-hour-long dinner at the posh Jefferson Hotel, just blocks from the White House, according to a senior administration official. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., gave the meeting a thumbs up as he exited the hotel, saying it was “just fine,” “great” and “wonderful.” McCain told reporters gathered across the street that it was a “very enjoyable evening,” but declined to discuss specifics. Obama invited 12 GOP senators to break bread as part of a larger effort to jump start budget negotiations and try to cut...

President Obama’s congressional charm offensive is set to continue next week when he is joined by his former rival, Rep. Paul Ryan, for a private lunch at the White House. Obama invited Mitt Romney’s former running mate to be his lunch date as part of a renewed effort to break a stalemate on budget negotiations by reaching out to rank-and-file GOP members. Ryan, who wrote the House Republican budget, is working on a plan he claims will eliminate the debt without raising taxes. Obama has insisted that any budget deal include a tax hike on upper-income Americans.

President Barack Obama picked up the tab for a March 6 dinner with 12 Republican senators, winning himself some very cheap publicity for his new legislative strategy of outreach to swing-voting GOP lawmakers. Senators leaving the event were complimentary about Obama’s statements and responses to their views, despite the deep ideological differences over spending, guns, families and immigration. The invited Senators were picked by Obama and by Sen. Lindsey Graham, the high-profile Republican senator from South Carolina.

When Barack Obama wanted to organize a dinner with Republican Senators he knew just who to call – Senator Lindsey (“Tell the Bigots to Shut Up”) Graham. Last night Lindsey and twelve other Republicans went to dinner with Barack Obama in an attempt to make the far left president look bipartisan. Lindsey spoke with reporters after the dinner. “So when the president asked to get together a group, I was willing and honored to do that.” Video:

US President Barack Obama has invited a group of Republican senators for dinner in an effort to advance budget negotiations, the White House has said. Not invited were Republican leaders, with whom Mr Obama's budget talks in recent weeks had stalled. (snip) Wednesday's dinner follows several phone calls the president has held in recent days with Republican senators, some of whom have responded warmly to the gesture. "This is how you solve hard problems," South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham told the Associated Press. (snip) The move suggests Mr Obama hopes to consolidate support among a group of Republicans who appear...