QUICK TAKES - Oct. 24, 2009

Charismatic U2 frontman Bono, in a reflective mood as the band brings its “360” tour to the Rose Bowl Sunday night, notes the different, more polarized atmosphere in the United States since the group performed at President Obama’s inauguration in January.

“I didn’t think it could come to this so quickly, after the joyous occasion of that election,” Bono said in an interview on board the band’s plane. “I thought America was looking good. . . . Things are getting a little rough now.”

Bono said he’s been in touch with Obama and is confident the president will deliver on promises made during the campaign, including the singer’s favorite issue: funding to fight AIDS in Africa.

“The Obama administration is just getting going. [He] has promised to double aid over the next years, because even though [President George W.] Bush tripled it . . . the United States is still about half as what European countries give as a percentage, and I think he knows that’s not right.”