Perry draws backers, foes, to SouthPark
By Tim Funk and Adam Bell
Posted: Thursday, Sep. 29, 2011

Texas Gov. Rick Perry and U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann brought their GOP presidential campaigns to Charlotte on Thursday, meeting with Republicans at fund raising events.

Perry mingled with about 100 Republicans willing to pay $1,000 to $2,500 to meet the candidate at a luncheon. The setting was a Tex-Mex restaurant in the SouthPark Mall.

Meanwhile, Bachmann made a luncheon appearance in Concord before moving to Charlotte for a meeting with business leaders.

As Perry donors entered the San Antonio Modern Restaurant to the strains of Mexican music, a small group of protesters gathered nearby on Barclay Downs Drive. They carried signs, saying Perry wasn’t tough enough on immigration.

Messages on the signs read “Say No to Rick Perry’s In-State Tuition for Illegal Aliens!â€