The three veterans who had lunch with President Barack Obama Tuesday in outer Northeast Portland didn't

.

All have connections to the Obama reelection campaign and were presumably chosen for good political reasons.

After all, Obama had

at a convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Reno, so the Portland lunch reinforced the message that president cares about vets. In addition, the local vets -- Thomas Foeller of Oak Grove and Mark Peterson and Dean Dilley, both of Portland -- are retired white males, a demographic the Obama campaign would certainly like to do better with.

Whatever the politics behind the luncheon, however, Foeller, Peterson and Diller said it was an experience they'll always remember.

"I can't emphasize how easy the president is to talk to," said Foeller, 65, a former Navy officer who later spent most of his career at the Bonneville Power Administration.

Foeller said Obama listened sympathetically as he talked about the problems rural veterans have getting access to health care and was quick to knock down a rumor Foeller had heard from his son-in-law -- an Iraq War veteran -- that members of the National Guard would get a pay cut.

There won't be any reduction, Obama told them.

"So we can clear that one up right away," Obama added, in a remark picked up by the press pool before it was ushered out. "You're hearing that from your commander in chief."

Peterson, 69, who spent 27 years in the Air Force and served in the Vietnam War, said Obama also talked about how he's worked to help veterans more easily apply their military training to certifications they need for civilian employment, whether as a welder or nurse.

More

None of the three vets knew each other before being chosen by the Obama campaign to meet with the president.

Dilley, 60, who served in the Army for three years and worked for Honda until retiring in 2009, said he has done a little voter registration work for the campaign. But he said he thinks he came to the campaign's attention when he called a couple of months ago asking if he could talk to the president about veterans issues.

"I never expected it to happen," Dilley added with a laugh.

Foeller, who said he's mostly active in a group fighting colorectal cancer, said he's also done some volunteer work for the Obama campaign. And Peterson said his wife volunteers for the campaign.

On Tuesday morning, all three met with a staffer and were driven to the restaurant and arrived shortly before Obama. The three said the restaurant workers and other patrons received notice only a few minutes before the president arrived.

Foeller and Dilley said Obama ate half of a cheese sandwich and skipped the ham in his split pea soup. "He's a pretty tall and slender guy," said Dilley. "Maybe that's why."

--