PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) — First Lady Michelle Obama has made a campaign stop in New Jersey, urging her husband's supporters to volunteer in the closing weeks of the presidential campaign — especially in swing states such as neighboring Pennsylvania.
Speaking before roughly 230 people during a fundraiser held at a private home in Princeton on Sunday afternoon, she touched on numerous topics — including the economy, health care reform and salary parity — while speaking for nearly 30 minutes.
The 1985 Princeton University graduate also discussed student financial aid, joking that after they were married, their combined monthly college loan bill was higher than their mortgage.
Tickets for the fundraiser started at $1,000. Besides appearing at the event, Mrs. Obama also participated in a luncheon that was closed to the media.
The fundraiser was held at the home of Andrew and Carol Golden. Andrew Golden is manager of the Princeton University Investment Company, which manages the university's multi-billion-dollar endowment.
The first lady said it was great to be back in the Princeton area and thanked her college roommates for coming to the fundraiser, but lamented that she had not had an opportunity to visit the campus of her Ivy League alma mater. She vowed, though, that she would "make that happen."
She also reminded her enthusiastic crowd about the importance of helping others.
"When you've worked hard and done well and walked through that doorway of opportunity," she said, "you don't slam it shut behind you. You reach back and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed."
