Obama’s Three Day Weekend
I was going to hold my tongue on this one, but I can’t.
After pushing Congress for weeks to hurry up and pass the massive $787 billion stimulus bill, President Obama promptly took off for a three-day holiday getaway.
Obama arrived at his home in Chicago on Friday, and treated wife Michelle to a Valentine’s Day dinner downtown last night. The couple was spotted leaving upscale Table Fifty-Two, which specializes in Southern cuisine, with the first lady toting what appeared to be a doggie bag.
The president plans to spend the Presidents’ Day weekend in the Windy City, and is not expected to sign the bill until Tuesday, when he travels to Denver to discuss his economic plan.
I’ve always thought that it is healthy for a President to take regular vacations. It’s an incredibly stressful job and it’s important for a president - on a human level - to have some down time to recalibrate the mind. But Obama’s been on the job 25 days and this is his second vacation and third getaway (vacation to Camp David and Chicago; quick getaway to visit school). Particularly at a time when we are in a financial struggle and he is committing the U.S. to spending trillions of additional dollars, he doesn’t seem to mind flinging money around for his travel. Air Force One is expensive to run just so that he can take his wife to dinner in Chicago after being on the job less than a month.
UPDATE: Neat.
The president, who has made several trips around the country in Air Force One, was particularly excited during his first trip on the plane as commander in chief when he flew recently to the House Democrats’ annual retreat in Williamsburg, Virginia.
“Thanks for giving me a reason to fly Air Force One,” he told the House Democrats after his flight, which took him away from a week of fighting for the economic stimulus bill.
Donning a blue jacket with the presidential seal on the right and his name embroidered on the left, Obama came back to the press section of the plane shortly before taking off for Williamsburg. WhiteHouse.gov: Obama’s first flights slide show
“Hey guys, what do you think of my—this spiffy ride here?” the president asked the group of reporters traveling with him on the presidential plane.
You had two posts on 2/6/09 (Running Late & Obama Complains About Lack of Bipartianship) whereby I commented about the possibility of him exhibiting signs of Attention Deficit Disorder.
Then again, the Stimulus bill passed, it’s all sunshine ahead now! “The Future is So Bright You Will Need Sunglasses”; Let the Good Times Roll! Mission Accomplished!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1115 hrs
My wife and I used to eat at Sanford once a year. We are cutting that out of the budget this year. My spending is down because our income is. The people who want my taxes to go up aren’t taking anything off the table for themselves
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1213 hrs
This guy is like a kid who just went to the candy store for the first time and it shows how immature he is.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1248 hrs
You are counting a weekend at Camp David and the afternoon trip to a school? Interesting. Well, let me know when he hits the vacation record of Junior Bush, who was on vacation 487 days of his presidency. Didn’t hear much about that here. In fact, the only thing I heard were…crickets.
Posted by Mike Plaisted on February 15, 2009 at 1305 hrs
Junior Bush isn’t the issue. We were told by the mainstream media he was a lazy slacker. Remember, the issue isn’t “Bush Bad” because we “knew” that already. We’re waiting the “Obama good” part of this.
The new dude we were told was going to work 24-hours for us, to avoid the catastrophe that was inevitable if the bill wasn’t put into place immediately.
Instead he tosses his giant carbon footprint out there on Air Force one for a weekend fling to Chicago.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1314 hrs
I like this one.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/02/obamas_pet_goat.html
So Far, Amateur Hour
...........................................................................
Or had he looked across the table into the eyes of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid and realized that he was not among friends? Obama’s lack of authority over the stimulus package has underscored the value of political experience and toughness—and given weakened Republicans the leverage they needed to launch an aggressive attack.In the midst of it all, Obama and Michelle went to an elementary school to read to second-graders, a now time-honored presidential release valve. Clinton read to children during his impeachment hearings. Bush, eternally and infamously, will be remembered for reading “The Pet Goat” to an elementary school class as airplanes were slamming into the World Trade Center towers.
Obama said they were “just tired of being in the White House.” Oh, just wait.
.........................................................................Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1332 hrs
It seems that the rush to get this passed wasn’t really that important after all. It could have been posted on the net for the promised 48 hours and if given the weekend I bet at least one congress person would have read the bill before voting on it. Hahahahahaha.
Posted by yoSAMite on February 15, 2009 at 1335 hrs
Owen- You’re apearing to become bitter and insignificant. Please look forward to things of substance to discuss. I suppose there is a benefit to the occasional lighthearted post, and you have a friendly amount of those. But this quasi-serious post, which you admit to having second guesses about posting should have hit the cutting room floor, so to speak. Where’s the beef?
Posted by Mike on February 15, 2009 at 1437 hrs
This IS a substantial issue. We were told in no uncertain terms by Obama last fall that the days of the American people being able to consume, drive SUV’s, pollute with coal, etc had come to an end.
And he fires up AF1 to take Michelle out to dinner and shopping on the Magnificent Mile with Oprah during the weekend the government is passing $1 trillion in massive spending without anyone even reading the bill.
If things were so dire, doesn’t “FDR jr.” stay in DC to sign the bill on Saturday and give a major speech about how this was a down payment on the recovery of the US?
This guy is proving to be as tone deaf and incompetent as Bush. In only three weeks.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1508 hrs
Owen you’re getting almost as as bad as Fred. I can hardly believe it. You’re not even attempting to appear fair or unbiased. G. W. took more vacations than anyone, but did you have an issue with it? Ever? And now we’re supposed to believe that it’s not partisanship that moves you to criticize Obama for taking a vacation—it’s just your deeply held concern about a president taking too much time off. Or something. I mean, what the fuck. I’m going to start calling you RDW. You can do better.
Posted by scott on February 15, 2009 at 1520 hrs
Steve, you nailed it. Obama said we are in desperate times with global warming. So he travels 155 miles when he could have helicoptered there (or why did the Dems even hold the conference in Williamsburg? Why not in DC?)
Obama is just a hypocrite.
And Mike, when will you get over your BDS? Why don’t hold Obama accountable? You just sound so damned ignorant.Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1523 hrs
I disagree.
The huge issue here is $1trillion bailout plan.A big issue is passing such a bill without the ability on the part of legislators to read the damn thing. As a supporter of the current president, I even have troubles with this. I don’t want legislators voting sight unseen on anything, not to mention $1trillion legislation.
A big issue is NOT the president going to Chicago for Valentines day. That is sour grapes and will land Owen and other members of the minority party in insignificant squawking blogger territory in no time, if it keeps up. Get over it.
Posted by Mike on February 15, 2009 at 1525 hrs
Dan-
What? What is BDS and how do you come to the conclusion that I have it? What makes you think that I don’t want to hold my president accountable?Posted by Mike on February 15, 2009 at 1528 hrs
You guys supporting Obama on this don’t get it. The guy just railed for a bill to go through an hour earlier in the day Friday that caps the compensation of the “big-shot” executives who don’t understand or are tone deaf to what is going on in the economy according to Obama. Thrift is in he says.
Then he gets on AF1 with Michelle and the kids to go to Chicago for a fun weekend on Michigan avenue during a crucial weekend to be in DC.
I’m not begrudging Obama at all for doing this. But don’t sit and moralize to me and the rest of the American people that we can’t drive an SUV or that the president of GM can’t use a private jet and then you pull this crap.
Leaders who lead by their actions (not words) are the ones who are the most effective. This guy is an empty suit with plenty of flowery words. I really didn’t buy that criticism of him made by the GOP before the election. Now I do.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1541 hrs
Owen you’re getting almost as as bad as Fred. I can hardly believe it. You’re not even attempting to appear fair or unbiased. G. W. took more vacations than anyone, but did you have an issue with it? Ever?
Scott, why don’t you just give it up and get the fuck out. For the last 8 years no one here could mention Clinton at all. Now all of a sudden when someone questions Obama, all we hear from the left is “BUT BUSH!!!” Fucking tools, all of you.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1541 hrs
When does an extra day off become a vacation? I don’t think that this would have been an issue if it wasn’t the much hated Obama doing it. How much work did Obama do when he was on the road in the past? You know as well as the rest of us do that there will be no “vacation” as the work will follow him to the end of the earth.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1546 hrs
It’s not the extra day off… it’s the trip that makes it a vacation. It’s not like he just took a day off and worked on decorating the White House or went to dinner in D.C. He fired up a 747 and flew to Chicago for pure leisure. I don’t know what you call a vacation, but if I took a 3 day weekend and went to Vegas, I would consider it a vacation.
Posted by Owen on February 15, 2009 at 1614 hrs
It has been so long since I took a vacation that I don’t know what one is anymore. I ran a restaurant for many years and when my wife and family would take an extra day off our customers would ask “How was your vacation?”. It actually would feel like a vacation but many of them got at least one a month.
I don’t think that we need to belittle Obama for making a trip. he certainly could have afforded this trip and many celebrities do. Should we start to condemn them all? I know he is the President but AF1 is his office and he will always be that close to work. What good is a vacation if work is followiing you around?
I would let it go and wait until something more controversial comes up to write about. The more petty you get the less relevant you will be when it matters.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1636 hrs
It’s not the extra day off… it’s the trip that makes it a vacation.
A vacation implies you are not working.
I said this when people whined about President Bush ‘vacationing’ in Texas and I’ll say it now: being the President is a 24/7 job. You never get away from it. When POTUS flies to Camp David or Texas or Chicago .. the job follows him: staff , nuclear briefcase, problems and all.
Posted by Brian Dunbar on February 15, 2009 at 1732 hrs
We’re watching as a pattern develops. That’s all…
Posted by dad29 on February 15, 2009 at 1849 hrs
Don’t forget, Granny went too, Also, just curious, who payed for that plane to privately fly the Senator back from Ohio to hurridly cast his vote on a bill he never read?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 1953 hrs
Once again Scott keeps it classy with his language. Can’t you make your sad and pathetic commentary without foul language?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 2146 hrs
Obama is just a hypocrite.
Indeed.
“Hey guys, what do you think of my—this spiffy ride here?” the president asked the group of reporters traveling with him on the presidential plane.
Sorry… Thats OUR plane Mr. President.
Leaders who lead by their actions (not words) are the ones who are the most effective.
I don’t think we’ll get through to the Obamabots, but all this “do as I say not as I do” bullshit is shameful.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 15, 2009 at 2255 hrs
The second sad part (the first sad part is taking Air Force 1 halfway across the country for a date—aren’t there any “Southern food” restaurants in DC?) is that by this time next week, plain brown paper bags will be the latest “must-have” fashion accessory, because Michelle was spotted carrying one.
I don’t think it was a doggie bag, though—it probably held jewelry. Why not, when you don’t have to pay for your ride out of your own pocket?
Posted by HeatherRadish on February 16, 2009 at 0724 hrs
Sad, just sad. I have now come to the conclusion that Bush Derangement Syndrome will never die.
Obama has been in office for less than a month and during a time of incredible economic unrest in this country he takes a trip to Chicago for shopping at expensive stores and dinner at an opulent restaurant?
What has happened to democrats, where is the shame?
I am sure that he did have everything along with him that he needed to make decisions, but this is the most tone deaf irresponsible way to take a couple days off.
Bush may have taken more vacation time than any other president, but at least he wasnt spotted running around downtown dallas during a recession eating at hundred plus dollar per plate restaurants…
I dont begrudge the man some time off, but jeez, keep it low key. Go to camp david, stay in your house in chicago…
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 0741 hrs
Un. Fucking. Believable.
Posted by scott on February 16, 2009 at 0741 hrs
For the record Feldstein, screw you.
Owen is right, Obama made this huge push that this had to be done now. And then when its all done he skips town for 3 days?
The only thing that is truly believable is how you radical leftoids will excuse bad behavior by your own everytime.
Posted by Fred on February 16, 2009 at 0937 hrs
He does the exact same thing as the guy you spent 8 years defending (okay, to be fair, you threw him under the bus after about 7 when he began to expose the absurdity of your self-first “ideology”), and it’s a derangement syndrome to point out the inconsistency and hypocrisy of that position? Is this the intellectual honesty that Rush Limbaugh is always talking about? It’s…interesting.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1056 hrs
Scott, do you call up book authors and tell them that they didn’t write what you wanted to read? Seriously, do you?
And the other Jason… I stopped defending Bush shortly after 9/11. He took such advantage of that situation to make me sick. When are we going to be able to mention anything critical about Obama without getting Bush thrown in our faces? It hasn’t been that long that I’ve forgotten the left telling us we can’t bring up Clinton when anything critical of Bush was mentioned. Talk about hypocrites!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1110 hrs
There’s a reason, besides my point in #12 above, why I don’t want to spend any more time discussing this issue, and its not what you think. I want the right to remain a strong force in our country’s political debate. I have always come here to debate with smart people on the right. Issues that mattered get frank discussion here. We even get to cuss each other out from time to time!
But if Owen, and the right in general, reduce themselves to petty bickering over really quite small issues, then the real issues don’t get discussed. If the right, in its opposition, chooses to marginalize itself ala MoveForward in # 18 above, then the political health of the country suffers.
Posted by Mike on February 16, 2009 at 1120 hrs
There’s just something incredibly distasteful about rank hypocrisy, so going from blaming Clinton for the economic problems and terrorism under Bush, to attacking Obama for taking vacation time shortly after 8 years of the most well-rested president in history is going to piss people off. Not only are you completely glossing over the guy you elected and defended, you’re playing the victim card when that hypocrisy is exposed, and crying about BDS. It’s frustrating, like dealing with an amoral little kid, so it’s going to get a reaction.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1137 hrs
The President needs time off just like everyone else. If he wants to take 6 months off I really don’t care - as long as what needs to get done gets done.
The real issue is that Obama is getting on his soapbox and complaining about all the corporate greed and sending people on vacation - and then he does the same thing. You tend to invite more criticism that way…
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1201 hrs
“But if Owen, and the right in general, reduce themselves to petty bickering over really quite small issues, then the real issues don’t get discussed.”
And what might these “real issues” be?
And what do you call what the left has done for the last 8 years? Go read any archives at Dailykos, or on Scott’s website.
I’m pretty sure that if Scott was told how to run his blog it would fall on deaf ears..
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1209 hrs
to attacking Obama for taking vacation time shortly after 8 years of the most well-rested president in history is going to piss people off.
It appears there’s a reading comprehension issue here, since that’s not what’s going on.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1214 hrs
OverTaxed-
I laid out what I thought the big issues were above. But, whatever, this has become a tempest in a teapot. You all have the right to be pissed off at Obama for this weekend’s activities, Owen included.
I’m sure there’s another post to respond to!Posted by Mike on February 16, 2009 at 1241 hrs
Wait, I thought Porkulus was so, so important, so, so vital. it had to be passed before being read…remember? It had to be passed now and passed fast. nope, not even digested…it had to be passed now! Then, all of a sudden it’s ho, hum off to Chicago?
What gives?Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1318 hrs
You do realize that Obama doesn’t vote on legislation, right?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1436 hrs
Its the old do what I say not what I do. The Democrats want us to have peddle cars to get to work, Wear jackets in doors in winter ans sweat our asses off in summer. But they are too important to have to change their lifestyle. Obamma has burned up more fuel in the last year flying his jets around than me and my family will in our lifetime.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1438 hrs
re: 37 Right, but he SIGNS it.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1447 hrs
Obamma has burned up more fuel in the last year flying his jets around than me and my family will in our lifetime.
There was this before the inauguration:
The carbon footprint of Barack Obama’s inauguration could exceed 575 million pounds of CO2. According to the Institute for Liberty, it would take the average U.S. household nearly 60,000 years of naughty ecological behavior to produce a carbon footprint equal to the largest self-congratulatory event in the history of humankind.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/01/debate_over_its_freezing.html
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on February 16, 2009 at 1527 hrs
And what do you call what the left has done for the last 8 years? Go read any archives at Dailykos, or on Scott’s website.
Yes, please do read all my political posts for the last six years or so. It actually shouldn’t take that long.
Posted by scott on February 18, 2009 at 1018 hrs
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