Pool Report: Obama at Civil Societies Forum, Meeting With Opposition Leaders

Subject: Final Pool Report

Potus departed the business forum at 5:16 pm for a four minute ride to the historic Metropol Hotel for the civil societies forum. He arrived about an hour late but was greeted with warm applause in a small hotel ballroom, decorated with art deco molding and chandeliers and deep, plum-red wall paper.

Russian activists were in fighting form when he arrived. Elena Paniflova, director of Transparency International - Russia, said democracy and human rights groups have become too preoccupied with statements and abstractions. "The struggle against corruption and the struggle against non-transparency is the struggle for human rights," she said. "We have to go back to simple values. We need to use truth to fight corruption and lies."

Yuri Dzhibladze, president of the Center for the Development of Democracy and Human Rights, lamented that President Medvedev had not accompanied potus. He praised potus for deciding to ban torture and close Guantanamo Bay.

But if they were expecting criticism of the Russian government from potus, they did not get it. He opened with an apology for arriving late and leaving early. "Not only do we need a reset between the US and Russian governments but we need a fresh start between our two societies," he said.

He trotted out familiar stories of his own work as a community organizer in the shadows of the steel mills and in poor churches on the South Side of Chicago. He had more failures than successes, but, "If you want to bring change, it's not enough to be an advocate, it's not enough to wait for the government to come. You have to step up and deliver results, real impact on people's lives."

"Russia's future is up to the Russian people," he continued. "Not every choice that is good for the United States is going to be good for Russia."

He then welcomed the steps that Medvedev had made toward a more civil society, recognizing the Russian president's representatives in the audience.

He concluded with an exhortation following a theme of the day, the invocation of Russian art, "what Tolstoy called the soul meaning of life, to serve humanity."

Potus was done and out by 5:55 and back at the Ritz Carlton at 6:01 to greet Russian dissidents and opposition leaders. At 6:15, the pool was brought in for a very brief spray. Potus was on one side of the table in a conference room, David Axelrod and Mark Lippert to his left, Michael McFaul and an unidentified aide to his right. (I'll get it for those who need it).

Across the table were chess legend Garry Kasparov, Leonid Gozan of the Right Cause Party, Boris Nemtsov of the Solidarity Movement and Gennadiy Zyuganov among others. Potus said he made it a habit to meet with opposition leaders on foreign visits, to assure host people that he knows the government is not the only representative of their views. Transcript to come.

Pool was shooed away, and a lid was called.