Northwest Indiana Discussion

The sound of helicopters over the Chicago lakefront today signaled the practice drills that accompany a presidential visit. And with Congress poised to act on a deal to raise the federal debt ceiling, President Barack Obama's plans to return to his hometown and engage in some fundraising are back on.

Obama is scheduled to attend a 50th birthday gala on Wednesday at the Aragon Ballroom, an event featuring Jennifer Hudson and Herbie Hancock. There’s also a dinner fundraiser planned for some special donors to go with the show at a cost of $35,800 a person.

As has been the case, fundraising dollars are being split between Obama’s 2012 re-election fund and the Democratic National Committee.

Obama’s attendance at the fundraiser had been in doubt during the lengthy debt and deficit debate in Washington, until the president announced Sunday that a deal had been reached with House and Senate leaders.

The Republican National Committee criticized Obama, saying that instead of planning a fundraiser after weeks of political gridlock over debt and deficit, the nation’s 9.2 percent unemployment rate “might be the next thing to tackle.”

Who would have thought everyone in Washington would be so stupid to let the deficit issue go to the last minute?

At the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Broadway Street in Chicago, a number of immigrant families planed to protest Obama's "record deportations" at the same time the president's event was taking place.