President Unlikely to Make 2016 Pitch
As reported by NBC Chicago online:
The White House on Thursday signaled that President Barack Obama was unlikely to travel to Copenhagen to personally deliver Chicago’s final pitch to the International Olympic Committee – a decision that would be a blow to his hometown’s prospects for landing the 2016 games.
IOC members will vote to decide the winning city for 2016 on Oct. 2, but White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said he wasn’t aware of any plans for Obama to attend the meeting.
“As far as the schedule I had seen, that was not planned,” Gibbs said, but he would “double check on the president’s schedule. Obviously, I anticipate having representatives there.”
Gibbs also suggested that the city’s bid for the Games didn’t need the boost that Olympic observers and IOC members predict it would get from Obama’s presence at the meeting.
This is Chicago so don’t be so easily fooled. Obama is playing coy so his visit can be a headling-stealing “surprise” to the IOC.