The press LOOOVE tossing around this "he's on vacation" line, when all he's really done is move the White House to Texas for a month. Because he can't get away and recharge, he's doing it in bits each day. Gee, wouldn't want the man in charge of the nuclear missiles to be well-rested, now would we?
BTW, has anyone else noticed that the MSM all got the talking points: It's "Sheehan and THOSE WHO'VE JOINED HER", as opposed to Sheehan and those she's always agreed with, as if she's down there minding her own business and these other groups have latched on to her without her permission? That's their setup for when someone points out all the anti-Israel kooks--they can say "Well, they just came down there, she didn't have any power over that."
The choice of Martha's Vineyard, late as it was, seems in retrospect to have been inspired. It may be the one place in America Mr. Clinton could go without any danger of running into anti-tax protestors, anti-abortion protestors, or anti-gay protestors. The Vineyard is a redoubt of Sixties liberalism; even the island's one radio station plays mostly the music of that era. The waitress-pardon me, waitperson-who attended the President and his party at the fabled Black Dog Tavern said she had marched on Washington but had never before met a President. She was thrilled. So was nearly everybody else, to judge by the myriad of welcome signs posted all over the place. The only message that had even a faintly discouraging word was nailed to a tree along one of the island's by ways. "Bill," it said, "we know you're trying."
http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache:IKqgf9Ge604J:www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n18_v45/ai_14657333+clinton+vacations+in+Martha%27s+Vineyard&hl=en
August 03, 2005
Presidential Vacation
It seems like every year since Bush took office whenever he goes on his August vacation, the media dwells on his time away from the White House as if Bush is just sitting on a beach, sipping pina coladas all day and getting a tan, ignoring the problems facing the country.
I remember things being different during the Clinton years... The media seemed to delight itself talking about the Clinton's vacation time, amused over how the President would unwind. It didn't seem to bother anyone that Clinton could not be bothered with national security issues while on the golf course. No one seems to mind that Congress is out of session for August recess either...
The left and the media (am I being redundant?) seem to act as if Bush is completely out of touch with his responsibilities as President and Commander-In-Chief when he is on these so-called "vacations." However, as The Washington Post reports, while on these vacations, "Bush continues to receive daily national security briefings, sign documents, hold teleconferences with aides and military commanders, and even meet with foreign leaders. And from the president's point of view, the long Texas stints are the best way to clear his mind and reconnect with everyday America."
Still, the media loves to focus on how much "vacation" time President Bush takes...
Until now, probably no modern president was a more famous vacationer than Ronald Reagan, who loved spending time at his ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif. According to an Associated Press count, Reagan spent all or part of 335 days in Santa Barbara over his eight-year presidency -- a total that Bush will surpass this month in Crawford with 3 1/2 years left in his second term.
"The Oval Office is wherever the president of the United States is," said Kenneth M. Duberstein, who was Reagan's last White House chief of staff. "With the communications being what they are, the president can communicate instantly with whomever he wants anywhere in the world."
Whether in the White House, overseas, or at his ranch in Crawford, President Bush is the President and Commander-In-Chief at all times.