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Typical of the ELITE, you eat dog food we will fly and eat caviar. I hate the thought of 3 more years of this.

Silly FA folks. Sacrifice is for the peasants, not the royalty.

Michael—First you bemoan the death of Capitalism. Then you cry for the little people.
Only in the gulag does both ways exist in harmony.

@Stanislav: Capitalism has done more for the little people than Marxism even promised.

Why can’t Obama just fly to a ranch once a month or something? This is an outrage!!

Rich, got a link that proves Bush flew to his ranch every month? I’m betting no.

I thought we had a serious financial crisis that required everyone to sacrifice?

Was this before or after buying all those choppers and joy rides? heh

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/01/16/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry4728085.shtml

Not quite every month. 77 visits in 96 months comes to about every 1.25 months.

Of course, that doesn’t count the 149 visits to Camp David…

my post must have spammed

I expect almost any time to hear that the Obamas are vacationing at their dachau on the Black Sea.

The guy had just got into the WH and flew back to Chi-town for Valentine Day – for a nice dinner. Where the hell is the outrage from the environmentalists? Don’t get in your SUV, but it’s OK for this knucklehead to jet around for ‘dates’.

Lord knows after what Obama and his fellow dems did to the NY economy, I’m glad he’s giving something back. I don’t begrudge him the trip to New York. I only note the hypocrisy of the press and the democraps in not castigating him as they would have a republican in similar circumstances.

The libs will rant and rave over Michelle’s clothes and how great a couple they make, what they wear and drink, etc., etc., etc.! They care nothing about the fact that he lives the high life while screwing and tattooing this country blue. It’s maddening!

@Rex: From all indications I’ve gathered, President Bush looks to be far more studious than President Obama. It could be a misperception on my part; but it’s ridiculous to suggest that Bush was doing nothing but loafing around Camp David or couch potatoing it at the ranch. He often brought work with him. Furthermore, President Obama has a bad habit of being unfashionably late to everything. President Bush, on the other hand, was obsessively punctual.

Nor would he approve of “casual dress M, T, W, Th, F” like a certain President O.

Maybe it cost one million dollars. Maybe each american will have to pay a penny.

Folks: That was brought to you by John Ryan…the drive-by one comment wonder.


*clap, clap, clap*

@Rex: Show me an example of where President Bush mobilized the entire Presidential airwing to take his wife out for dinner in New York or anywhere else.

Going to the ranch for an extended stay is not the same thing as hauling the entire Presidential apparatus through the streets of New York on a Saturday night.

Do you have ANY idea how much effort is involved in ANY presidential movement? Even a short visit like this required days of staff and security time and the setup of an entire mini-White House with all the communications and security apparatus.

Even the military guy with the codes for a nuclear attack has to tag along.

I think that the “number of trips” metric is misleading. Let’s talk about days.

His predecessor spent all or part of 490 days in Crawford.
His predecessor spent all or part of 487 days at Camp David.

I’ll certainly agree that many, if not most, of those days had some elements of “work” (Presidents don’t get a true vacation), but that’s still 977 of 2920 Presidential days spent outside DC – right at 1/3 of his Presidency.

In light of that, I’m not going to begrudge this guy the occasional night out. Complaining about this ranks right down there with the folks griping about the fact that he had a beer at a basketball game.

@wesmorgan1: Wes, Bush was in office for EIGHT YEARS. But that isn’t the point.

reread my comment at #17.

I don’t begrudge the guy for a night out. But how many times does your employer pay for your night out? Plus, the thing about the Obamas is that they claim that they are just so much more in touch with the people (*cough* peasants) than past administrations. So why then would they do something like this that they know would bring so much media attention to themselves? My guess, is that they really don’t care. They think they deserve this treatment, and that they are above what they preach to others. It’s hypocrisy in it’s finest.

And for Bush going to camp David and to Crawford…I think that many, many times he was at both locations with other world leaders. He was concerned with our nation and many of these trips were working trips that just happen to be outside of the White House. He didn’t parade he and his wife in front of the camera’s while spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for a “date” to NYC when thousands of Americans are unemployed.

Cause we all know what a dump the White House must be to spend leisure time in.
Ingrates.

I don’t think the obamas have any true appreciation for the priviledge of living in the White House.
Behavior not unlike those with a sense of entitlement.
“We deserve to be here, but we don’t want to hang out here.”

Hmm……
On the other hand…
Maybe the spirits of past presidents have made the White House an unpleasant place for them to live on a visceral level….nothing specific to pinpoint for the obamas to mention or complain about…..maybe spirits have kept it from being an easy place to enjoy living in.

The White House surely must have some haunt stories….

I can only say to those who have nice excuse for Obumble: You are all fools.

These two posers that live in the White House are living proof of the ignorance of American voters…over 60 million of them…well, maybe over 50 million…ACORN probably resurrected over 10 million with their illegal activities. That won’t be investigated until we have some adults back in charge. At any rate, we’re in for a horrible 4 years of Carter’s second administration.

I blame Ross Perot for all of the bad that’s happened in the past 17 years. Without him, Clinton goes onto the ash heap of history, foreign policy doesn’t allow the rise of terrorists like bin Laden, no 9/11, no “wall of separation” between CIA and FBI, no Monica Lewinsky scandal, no Hillary Clinton, no Barack Obumble and his nasty wife in the White House.

Maybe we’d even have had no Iraq war or GWB as President…that should make the left even more in agreement with me on this. LOL.

Nice post Mike. You left out the C-5 though. They load the limo’s and the secret service support staff vehicles into the C-5.

I too don’t have a problem with any sitting president having some down time, even the Obamas. I’m a big believer in productivity via avoiding burnout, albeit I could suggest lesser expensive means.

What I do have a problem with is the in our face lack of leadership. Anyone with at least a few business brain cells knows that everything, absolutely EVERYTHING starts at the top.

Over this past year I personally have witnessed some extraordinary integrity minded CEO’s who, before cutting staff and benefits, cut at the top first, starting with their own executive perks. One CEO told me, “How could I ever expect my employees to take cuts when I don’t lead the way by example?” To him it was a no brainer; incomprehensible to not make sacrifices along with his staff, but to also be the first in the company to take a hit.

As for Bush, most/many of his vacations were “working vacations”, even many of his weekends at Camp Daivd. He also stopped playing golf once he sent troops to Iraq, proving my initial point.

So let’s face it. As long as we have a printing press that prints money, the Obamas and all other WH Staffers who feel so entitled, can live as large as they like. Consequently, it continues to validate, by ‘living proof’, that global warming is a farce and President Obama, by his actions, is all about “President Obama.” It would also be appreciated if Michelle Obama would just stay home rather than show up for her “food bank photo ops” in her $500.00 sneakers. Who does she think she’s fooling?

I really try to keep respect for the office of the POTUS, but to be honest, it’s getting pretty darn hard. I’ve yet to see one bit of evidence of ANYTHING President Obama has sacrificed for this country.

First of all, Obama is a Socialist – plain and simple. A person would have to be illiterate and guilty of never cracking open a history book to not understand that this man is a Socialist. He has never solved the uneasy question of the legitimacy of his birth certificate. He attended a church for years pastored by a man who spewed black liberation theology.

His records have been sealed at Occidental, Columbia and Harvard. His wife’s records have been sealed at Princeton. He shakes hands with Socialist leaders, listens to their rants about America and declares that Americans are arrogant when traveling overseas.

He has now spent enough money through the Billion Dollar Bailouts to tax our great grandchildren into financial slavery and he continues to spend and appoint people who don’t pay their own taxes. The man he appointed as Secretary of the Treasury (of all things) was $40,000 delinquent in his own taxes. He is taking over the auto industry, firing people in the auto industry and still printing more money that cannot be tracked for accountability purposes. And this man graduated from Harvard?

He is going to put the finishing touches of Marxism and destruction on what was once considered one of the greatest and richest nations in the world. I have come to the conclusion that the people who voted him into office are either stupid, ignorant, gullible, pagan or just plain Marxist. Why, on God’s beautiful green earth, would anyone vote a person into office who is intent on destroying this country?

So, I said all of that to say this………No, he does not deserve a night out at a nice, fancy restaurant, complete with a Broadway Show. He deserves a Happy Meal at McDonald’s, cause after what he’s going to do to this country and after what he has already done, that’s all anyone will be able to afford when they go out to eat – a Happy Meal. I suggest that he digs up some of his school books from Harvard and figures out that it is in the best financial interest of the country for him to stay at the White House and grill a steak.

“Rich, got a link that proves Bush flew to his ranch every month? I’m betting no.”

49 trips to Crawford during Bush’s first 55months in office or 1 trip every 1 month and 3 days during the first term and 7 months into the second term:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002417607_crawford03.html

“His records have been sealed at Occidental, Columbia and Harvard. His wife’s records have been sealed at Princeton.”

Uh…all college records are “sealed.” All school records are sealed. No school and no college opens student records to public viewing. You can request that transcripts of your own records be sent to persons you designate, but unless you do so, your school records remain strictly confidential. It is against the law for any school to violate your confidentially without your written permission. If Obama wanted to share his transcripts he could do so, but he hasn’t done so.

I could not go to your college and access your records, but then again, maybe you don’t know this because you don’t know anything about colleges. If you ever had to make your transcripts available to a prospective employer or to another university, you would know that only you can authorize the release of your transcripts. They are otherwise sealed.

The Secret Service and the military cost the same whether George Bush or Barack Obama are cutting brush in Crawford or shooting hoops in the basement. When the president goes to New York, New York picks up the tab. “Law and Order”, Barbra Streisand, St. Anthony – New York will shut down a street for pretty much anybody. Nobody notices. Traffic is really that bad.

@pj: So you have worked yourself on a number of these presidential trips and can attest to what you assert above?

Let me tell you from my own experience that what you said is NOT true.

Every time the President goes anywhere, an army of secret service and military is dispatched to the area days, sometimes a week in advance to set up communications, do advance work and security.

I worked on one such trip when President Reagan visited my home town ( I was the White House Political Aide on the trip). We took over an entire hotel in town for a week.

President Reagan was only on the ground for an hour.

None of those costs, would have been incurred if the President had stayed in the White House.

Mike,

Frankly wesmorgan1 In his statement on #18 Has this right….

Yes, Bush was in office for 8 years… wesmorgan1 has the number of days correct too…

Did you get on Bush W’s case for all those days off??

I doubt it.. Do you have a double standard here??

I would certainly say you do!

Did you get on Bush W’s case for all those days off??

Anyone who thinks that the POTUS, any POTUS, ever has the “day off” is showing a remarkable ignorance of the reality of what the job of President entails.

Of course, Sky55110, has shown a remarkable ignorance on every other subject so why should this one be any different?

Did you get on Bush W’s case for all those days off??

Much of those were working vacations. Somehow I don’t think the Obamas’ night out was a “working” date.

A more comparable comparison to find would be whether or not Bush and Laura went out on a date at taxpayer’s expense after telling the nation we have to tighten our wallets and cut back on carbon emissions for the sake of the planet.

Wow, it’s really tough to get in here sometimes. But anyway, FWIW, I worked with Secret Service twice on visiting dignitary duty, not presidential, but even on s**t detail they could call up amazing amounts of equipment of all kinds with a snap of the radio. When I asked how they could do that at 11:00 pm on Sunday, They said, “We can get anything we want. It’s already paid for whether we use it or not, right down to jet fuel.” They don’t get laid off and equipment doesn’t get mothballed between assignments. Air Force One pilots don’t have day jobs with an airline. Now, I know going to New York to see a Broadway show costs more than a live feed to the White House, but still, they’re not going from zero to 10 mllion dollars either. Finally, my experience was early Reagan years. Everything is not the same, I guess.

@pj: PJ, Do you really believe that all those agents and military would have been working that evening anyway? How about all the NYC Police that were called out?

Do you really think that we fly limos and helicopters to New York every weekend just in case the President may need them?

President Ford visited one of our larger malls, SS was there for a week scouring the mall, even went through all the planters. Even though they may have everything at their fingertips, everytime they snap those fingertips it costs the taxpayers.

Making a trip to a unsecured area is different than traveling to the areas that are on budget, maintained and secured for our presidents such as Crawford, Camp David, the NY Clinton home or any of the other alternative WH’s used by past presidents. As far as Obama’s “date night” it is what it is, it proves how silly, immature, and detached he is to those struggling in this economy.

Hell, I’d like to see Congress leave town more often. When they’re all out of Washington DC it’s that much less time they have to screw-up the country and “F***” us over.

I am tired of all you retards bombing on Obama. All that staff and money he used is already in their budget for one and for two Bushy spent, for the most part, the first eight months of his presidency at Camp David getting paid by tax payers to play golf. Bushy is one of the main reasons this country is in the financial shit whole. He ran this country in to the whole just as he did 3 companys he ran before taking office.
Quit bagging on Obama for every little thing, he is one of the few government officials who has the best at heart for America. I could go on but I know stupid people are going to get it no matter how much I say.

@Concerned citizen:

I could go on but I know stupid people are going to get it no matter how much I say.

I don’t get it. Could you go on? Say more, please ’til the smart people get it.