Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm usually picks up the phone if she wants to talk to a member of the Obama administration.

On Monday, the second-term Democrat picked up a fork.

Granholm and Vice President Joe Biden chowed down on a couple of chili dogs during a photo op at a Detroit eatery.

The governor insisted on paying, but Biden quickly shot her down.

This story continues below
Advertisement

He pulled out a bunch of bills, smiled and announced: "I got $100 with me. I'll even buy the press a hot dog!"

Money was the theme of the vice president's trip to Detroit.

He spent the morning at the MGM Grand Detroit hotel raising cash for the Michigan Democratic Party and two congressional freshmen who could be vulnerable in next year's election.

The event pulled in better than $300,000 for the party and the campaigns of U.S. Reps. Gary Peters of Oakland County's Bloomfield Township and Mark Schauer of Battle Creek.

Biden spent a half-hour giving an economic status report to the 140 Democratic donors attending the fundraiser.

Biden said the economic recovery still has a long way to go, even with help from the stimulus funding and other measures put in place by the Obama administration. But the vice president was optimistic the economy will rebound, despite the naysayers.

"It's always a bad bet to bet against America," he said, adding that Republicans are "betting on us to fail."

The GOP, for its part, wasn't impressed with the vice president's trip to Detroit.

The Republican National Committee began airing a new radio ad in Michigan on Monday criticizing Biden's visit.

The 60-second ad accused Biden of "getting together with his fat cat friends to do political fundraising" instead of dealing with Michigan's highest-in-the-nation unemployment rate.

"More than anything the people of Michigan need jobs, yet Vice President Biden and Michigan Democrats Mark Schauer and Gary Peters are spending their time fundraising," RNC Chairman Michael Steele said in a statement. "It's time for the Democrats to make their constituents a priority and start working to bring jobs back to Michigan."

The GOP is targeting Peters and Schauer in 2010, not only because they're freshmen in swing districts that usually elect Republicans, but also because of their Saturday night votes supporting the Democratic health care bill.

Anticipating a GOP attack, Schauer sent an e-mail message to supporters over the weekend seeking donations to his re-election campaign.

Biden did his best to help Schauer and Peters Monday morning before heading to Lafayette Coney Island with Granholm in tow.

They had talked about jobs and the economy, before heading inside to greet some fellow diners. Biden and Granholm then settled in at the counter for their lunch - chili dogs with no onions and Diet Cokes.

The governor ate her dog with a fork, but Biden dug right in without any silverware.