Obama makes surprise stop for California Dem

President Obama made his first public appearance on behalf of Democratic congressional candidates Thursday, making an unscheduled stop at the campaign office of Ted Lieu, a state senator running in California’s 33rd Congressional District.

“California is right at the heart of the battle for control of the House,” Obama told volunteers who were placing calls for Lieu and Democratic Reps. Raul Ruiz and Julia Brownley. “Because of just the day-to-day work you’re doing, making phone calls, making sure our voters turn out, answering people’s questions about what the issues are, it makes a difference — that’s how I was able to get elected.”

{mosads}The president went on to praise Lieu directly, saying the Democrat had to have “an excellent ground game in order to emerge from a hard fought primary.” 

“State senators make outstanding members of Congress,” Obama added.

Before Thursday’s event, Obama had been a total-no show on the campaign trail ahead of November’s midterm elections, with closed campaign fundraisers serving as his only political events. The president left Lieu’s office to attend such a fundraiser at the home of actress Gwyneth Paltrow, and has a series of additional high-dollar events slated for the remainder of his three-day California trip.

That’s a contrast from other members of the administration, and an indication of how the president’s declining approval ratings have made it difficult for the White House to use Obama to bolster vulnerable Democrats.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest on Monday conceded that Obama “has not begun a sustained campaign of campaign-related activities.”

“But you know, the president has talked in a variety of settings, including in some of the fund-raising settings that you have observed, that he feels strongly about how important it is for candidates who share his view about putting in place policies that benefit middle-class families be either elected or reelected to office,” Earnest said.