Obama Stops by Canter's for Lunch

President Barack Obama continued his 24-hour visit to the Los Angeles area today, taking part in a Democratic National Committee fundraiser in Brentwood then surprising the lunch crowd at Canter's Deli where he bantered with the crowd and sat down with four pre-selected diners.

The president left the fundraiser shortly before 11 a.m. for what was expected to be a trip to Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, where he will speak this afternoon. But the motorcade first made a stop at Canter's Deli in the Fairfax area.

"Hi guys, how are you?" Obama asked diners as he walked into the famed diner on Fairfax Avenue. Cooks snapped photos of him with their cell phones, and some fist-bumped him as he walked in.

One diner asked the president about his basketball game, to which Obama responded, "My shot's broke."

"It's my elbow. It's my age," he said. "I get the chicken wing."

Obama sat down at a booth with four people who, according to the White House, "took the time to write him letters." The lunch was part of his effort to "meet with folks from across the country to listen to their stories, struggles and successes, as well as the issues in their lives that matter most."

Obama had lunch with teacher Katrice Mubiru, who will also introduce him at Trade-Technical College; Army veteran Aaron Anderson, who was wounded in Afghanistan; Joan Waddell, a 60-year-old mother of three trying to become a certified nursing assistant; and Kati Koster, who graduated with a master's degree from Pepperdine University and is struggling to pay student loans, rent and monthly bills.

The president left the deli at about noon and was greeted by a cheering crowd outside. He then moved on to Trade-Technical College, where he is expected to speak about the importance of "job-driven skills training."

--City News Service