Closing Argument: Reading, Golfing and Playing Board Games
EmailRain and lashing winds have not dampened the First Family’s 10-day getaway on Martha’s Vineyard.
President Barack Obama and his family have been keeping a low profile on the island off Massachusetts.
Of course, as the White House points out, it’s not all relaxation.
The president continues to receive daily briefings on intelligence and the economy.
This summer trip is his ninth vacation as of early 2008 and when the president takes off to New Orleans on Sunday, he will have spent only 46 days on vacation since taking office.
By comparison, former President George W. Bush had been to his Crawford, Texas, ranch spanning all or part of 102 days by this point in his presidency.
But a break for the commander-in-chief is a sensitive political issue.
Critics question the wisdom of any time off for the president considering the tanking economy, millions unemployed and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
What do you think of the president and his family taking some time off?
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I think he and his wife are elitists and are spending way too much of our time and money on lavishness. He is guiding us from dire to catastrophic economic circumstances. He makes one bad choice after another. Not sure we can survive 2 more years of this. The damage he is doing may be irreversible.
Posted by: Buck | August 25, 2010, 8:08 am 8:08 am
Well deserve. It seems there’s a lot of people who do not understand what is the economic situation of this country and why we are here today.Whoever came to be the next president had to deal with the same problems Obama is facing today. The damage was done when the last administration.
Posted by: Hugo | August 25, 2010, 8:35 am 8:35 am
No president should be taking time off with the country in the sad shape it is. This is outrageous and totally undeserved. Obama knew the sad shape the country was in, when he took office. He should have been committed to working through the four short years of a presidency without out a vacation. If he did not have that kind of dedication, he should not have taken the job. He should have given someone else the chance to do it. Only if a president succeeds in bringing the country into smooth waters does he or she deserve a day or two off. The last time we were in smooth waters, Reagan was in office. No president should ever get 10 days off.
The US president and all government employees need a wake up call on what life is like in the real world. There is pressure to deliver. You have to be doing your part to bring money in the door of the business all the time. If you take a vacation, you may come back and find you do not have a job anymore. There are way too many people for the jobs available. It is a simple matter for any employer to replace you in a moment. There is clawing at the door and gnashing of teeth to get the jobs. I have not gotten a vacation for 20 years now. That’s the way it is in the real world. Get to work, Obama—you lazy, worthless goldbrick.
Posted by: Proud Native American and Angry Independent Voter | August 25, 2010, 1:38 pm 1:38 pm
Why does this article refer to the amount of time that Bush spent in Crawford? Have you ever been to Crawford? It’s hardly a vacation spot!
I live in Los Angeles but my office is in Boston. Does that mean that I don’t work?
Why don’t we compare Obama to another president instead of trying to justify his poor record on someone else! I hear that almost everyday from my kids!!!
Posted by: Mark Walcoff | August 25, 2010, 8:48 pm 8:48 pm
If I had the President’s job I would need more rest days that that. I am sick and tired of everybody whining about whatever President Obama or his family does ALL THE TIME! We have some of the most negative people I know in our country — we could take lessons from his thoughtful and caring attitude.
Posted by: Nancy | August 25, 2010, 9:41 pm 9:41 pm
They made a television show about Obahmer… it was called Bozo the Clown. Can this JOKER do any more damage and displace the trust of that many more people who voted for him to become our President. This nonsense of acting like he’s saving us from the Ghost of Gorge W. has got to stop — Obahmer is doing more damage to our nation than his paternal political grandpapi Jimmy Carter did — and that was major damage. GWB said what he meant and meant what he said. The oft-refuted slick talking Obama cannot make this same claim.
Posted by: Rich Erthanu | August 26, 2010, 4:13 am 4:13 am
Good comments, Rich.
I too am sick of people comparing Kingpin Obama to prior presidents. If a prior president was a loser, that doesn’t justify Obama being a loser or trying to be an even bigger loser.
Posted by: Proud Native American and Angry Independent Voter | August 26, 2010, 11:41 am 11:41 am