Sights and sounds from the president’s visit

The presidential motorcade outside Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein’s home Monday. (AP)

President Barack Obama’s visit to Fairfield County Monday was a whirlwind of suits and high heels, security agents and applause. As a one-day member of the press pool, for me the experience was mainly long periods of waiting punctuated by quick trips to hear the president speak, followed by frantic writing and emailing. Here are a few things that made an impression on me, which due to time constraints may not have made it into my final stories:

STAMFORD:

  • President Barack Obama began his remarks with a nod to his own graying hair — he celebrated his 51st birthday Saturday — and a shout out to the United States’ women’s Olympic soccer team, which only hours before defeated their Canadian opponents in a tough match. “It’s just an extraordinary reminder that even when we have political differences, when it comes to our love of this country and the incredible people who represent us, we’re unified,” Obama said of the Olympic Games. “It’s a very gratifying feeling during the course of a political season.”
  • Obama on political campaigns: “It’s a healthy thing because that’s what our democracy is about. Sometimes it’s messy, folks get excited. But in this election in particular the reason there is such an intensity is the choice we face in November could not be bigger. It’s not just a choice between two candidates or two political parties. It’s a choice between two fundamentally different paths for our country and the direction we choose.”
  • Obama on the the nation’s identity: “All these things that help make a middle class life, they all tie together. They’re all central to the idea that made this country great. If you work hard, you can get ahead. The same promise our parents and our grandparents passed down to us and now it’s our responsibility to make sure that our children and grandchildren can enjoy that great privilege.”

WESTPORT:

  • I wrote in today’s story that Stamford has become a  “warm up band” for high profile political fundraisers. In recent years and months both Obama and his Republican rival Mitt Romney have stopped in the city for large, lower-priced (but not cheap by any means!) events before motoring off to a nearby affluent town for a more exclusive — and expensive — private fundraiser. Tonight was no different – Stamford was a brief and enthusiastic cocktail reception at the Marriott Hotel & Spa during which guests stood facing the stage as if at, well, a Ben Harper concert, while the President delivered his remarks. If Stamford was a rock concert, Harvey Weinstein’s home in Westport was Carnegie Hall — very pretty, but not necessarily as loud or exciting.
  • What is in Harvey Weinstein’s garage? I know this is the kind of cutting edge news reporting you are looking for and I will not disappoint. The two-car garage was designated at the press pool’s “holding area,” which allowed me plenty of time to compile a list: light bulbs, cleaning supplies, brown cardboard boxes, a dust buster, a volleyball, yellow whiffle ball bat, toolboxes, Hefty black garbage bags and a brown sled.  They also left the media some beer, but I didn’t see anyone indulging.
  • The seating was tight – almost cramped – in the barn-style room where the dinner was held. Guests sat at tables covered in long off-white table cloths. The centerpiece was white flowers and small white candles dotted the tables. Seating was assigned and the tables were divided between an upper and lower level separated by a couple of stairs. Actresses Anne Hathaway and Joanne Woodward were seated up top, which at first made me think the lower section was for Connecticut politicians (they stuck Gov. Dannel Malloy in the back) but then I saw Aaron Sorkin seated at the middle table on the bottom level. I couldn’t tell in the time they allowed us if President Obama had a seat, when the media was in the room he stood at the microphone near Hathaway and Weinstein.
  • The White House press pool, which does this sort of thing every day, was impressed only by Anne Hathaway — who all agreed looked stunning.