Obama Begins Hawaiian Vacation

Democrat Plans To Visit His Grandmother, Bodysurf "At Undisclosed Location"

(AP)  Barack Obama's presidential campaign has taken him across the country and finally for the first time on Friday it brought him home to Hawaii for a week's vacation.

Obama's campaign plane arrived Friday, with 17 of his friends and family members filling the seats normally occupied by his traveling advisers. The band included his wife, Michelle, 10-year-old daughter Malia and 7-year-old daughter Sasha.

They were staying with friends and family on Oahu, where his sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, and 85-year-old grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, live. Obama's grandmother helped raise him, but Obama has said osteoporosis keeps her from traveling and instead she follows campaign coverage closely on CNN.

He told reporters Thursday that time with the family was worth ceding the campaign spotlight to Republican rival John McCain. The vacation was timed for the start of the Olympics when the country's attention would likely be diverted from politics anyway.

"I am going to see my grandma, who I haven't seen in almost 18, 19 months, and who's getting to the age that I want to make sure I am spending time with her on a consistent basis and so she can see her great-grandchildren," he said. "And I want to spend some time with those children as well.

"We had a very long primary, we had the longest primary in history, and so I can imagine folks need a break from politics," he said. "I think that the majority of people had been fed a constant stream of political chatter, and I am sure that having a couple of weeks off and enjoying the Olympics is probably what the doctor ordered for everybody."

Obama had a little work to do - he spoke at a welcome ceremony at Keehi Lagoon Beach Park upon his arrival and on Tuesday he was to headline a sold-out $2,300-per-person fundraiser.

"We're not here to politic," Obama told supporters gathered at the park. "I'm going to go body surfing at an undisclosed location. I'm going to see my tutu, my grandmother. I'm going to watch my girls play on the beach."

He talked some politics, promising to help address soaring food and gas prices that are hitting Hawaii especially hard because of increased shipping costs and thanking residents for supporting him in the caucus. He said he carries the "aloha spirit" with him on the campaign to help those in need. "It's that spirit that I'm convinced is what America is looking for right now," he said.

The events made Hawaii the 48th state that Obama has campaigned in, an extraordinary sweep for modern presidential campaigns that have focused on a smaller number of early primary states and general election battlegrounds. But the long primary campaign took him to almost every state - Arkansas and Alaska are the only two where he hasn't stumped for votes in person.

Obama planned to stay on Oahu until Aug. 15, and he promised the slimmed-down press corps that accompanied him on the flight over that he would introduce them to the island favorite treat of shave ice at some point during the stay. Campaign aides said the destination was chosen in part because it offers a secluded beach where he can relax with his family out of the public eye, and they are trying to avoid the pictures of him in his bathing suit that appeared in celebrity magazines after his last visit in December 2006.

The time away will also give Obama a chance for reflection on his running mate selection. He'll return from vacation with just nine days until the convention, a short window to announce his pick. He told reporters he'll be working on his convention speech while he's Hawaii.

Obama was born in Hawaii. His Kansas-born mother and Kenyan father met as students at the University of Hawaii.

His father left when he was a toddler, and his mother later remarried an Indonesian who moved the family to his home country when Obama was in elementary school. Obama returned to Hawaii without his mother after four years, lived with his grandparents in a modest apartment and got a scholarship to attend a prestigious private high school.

[fstop100]

He doesn''t have time to perform his duties as a senator and he still gets a vacation...

[demwatcher]

Obama went to visit his grandmother.

Not hard to find her, just look under the bus.

[txlakeside]

Maybe if some of you cry babies went to school, got a real education and had a little more charisms than dirt, you would have the money and the time as well

[zerato-2009]

He doesn''''t have time to perform his duties as a senator and he still gets a vacation... Posted by fstop100

Mccain has missed 60% of his votes in the senate, spends 5 days campaigning and 2 days in sedona every week and you say obama is not doing his job. Bush has taken 541 vavation days and has traveled more tahn any president(seemingly for no other point except to sightsee) Amazing

This is the last time he can take a vacation before the fall campaign starts. No better place to unwind other than Hawaii. And having the added benefit to visit your family. This should quieten the family values critics

[ubrew12]

Speaking of vacation, who holds the record for the MOST vacation taken by any president in US history?
(2 years out of the last 8)

"He told us that big government didn''t work.
So we hired him. And he proved it to us"

[mslola58]

UMMMMMMMMM! Lets see.....Senator Obama goes to see his aging grandmother (Tutu - I Love that ) or McSurge offers up his wife at a rauncy-halfdressed-beer*gut biker rally. Who do I what as President?

[ubrew12]

"President Bush is going on his annual vacation. The White House says he goes to his Texas Ranch to unwind. I''m thinking, when does he wind?"
David Letterman

[ubrew12]

"President Bush is vacationing in Crawford, Texas. He will be vacationing for five weeks. That''s a long time.

I don''t think he has an exit strategy for his vacation either."
David Letterman

[hypnotoad72]

"He told us that big government didn''t work.
So we hired him. And he proved it to us"

Posted by ubrew12 at 11:01 AM : Aug 09, 2008
-----------------------------------------

Too much irony in his diet? :ROTFL:

We all know the argument "big government is bad, rah rah rah". So what''s going to take its place, and where is it to show how bloody awful "big government" is by comparison?

[whitemale08]

Get rested up, you deserved it in bringing hope.

That''s why you are the "One".

[hypnotoad72]

(Drivel about getting real education)

Posted by txlakeside
----------------------

Please try and think. If everyone had a college education, would anything be different? No. In this shrinking economy, people with Masters degrees are losing jobs, tuition keeps skyrocketing and hardly in pace with actual wages so the d@mn loan can be repaid. Not to mention offshoring. For a start, make tax incentives to companies that keep jobs here.And their tax rate is already low - especially compared to 1952, and never mind this $9 trillion debt that has helped them just as much as it''s helped everyone else. Especially without jobs for us, how will the debt EVER get repaid if it''s shifted completely from corporate to civilian?

Find an article entitled "The Education Scam" on Techrepublic''s web site. Read it.

And they''re right. A college degree does not mean automatic prosperity; and we both know if EVERYONE had a big college degree, nothing would change. There''s an old maxim; "It is not what you know but who you know". College educated work is as much an overpriced nuisance as call center staff are; the only way to genuinely make it is to become a CEO.

I am NOT saying "Do not bother with education", or even implying it.

But I know people who agree, "Getting an education in a field being offshored or otherwise eliminated is a waste of money". Surely TCO and ROI are as relevant to us as everyone else?

[hypnotoad72]

http://techrepublic.com.com/5208-11181-0.html?forumID=6&threadID=179848&start=0

I am NOT saying "Do not bother with education", or even implying it. But I know people who advised and I am compelled to agree, "Getting an education in a field being offshored or otherwise eliminated is a waste of money". Surely TCO and ROI are as relevant to us as everyone else?

[realpatriot1]

b48151,

Seems McCain''s answer to everything is tax breaks for the rich and letting the middle class pay for it, which should make Paris Hilton and the other spoiled little unproductive heiresses happy.

[whitemale08]

Seems as though Hussein''''s answer to everything is to TAX TAX TAX ....which should make all the deadbeats happy.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by b48151 at 11:35 AM : Aug 09, 2008--

Them "tax cuts for the rich" didn''t work out to well for this horrible economy, now did it?

[whitemale08]

Seems as though Hussein''''s answer to everything is to TAX TAX TAX ....which should make all the deadbeats happy.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by b48151 at 11:35 AM : Aug 09, 2008--

You Republicans said "tax cuts for the rich" would help out the "middle class" and create jobs through investments by Wall Street....

Well, we''re still waiting....(whistling).

[sereptaann]

With the country suffering to pay for food and gas, Sen Obama flaunts a Hawaiian vacation in the middle of an election......nice, really nice!

[likeitis5050]

For those of you criticizing Obama... McCain has done far worse so I would ****.

McCain hasn%u2019t actually voted on anything in the Senate since April 8. McCain now ranks as the #1 most absent senator of the 110th Congress, having missed 61.8 percent of the votes. He even beats Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD), who took several months off while recovering from a brain hemorrhage. Important votes missed include the economic stimulus package and %u201Cat least seven votes of prominence on Iraq.%u201D

McCain is all talk, and no action. Just an empty Navy cap.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by azure11

You might wish you could make us **** but it''s still a free country and this is a message board. You''ll be the first one to gripe when this kind of freedom is squashed by the likes of Obama....boooooo hooooooo.

[erasmus81]

"That''''s why you are the "One"." Posted by whitemale08 at 11:26 AM : Aug 09, 2008


Better hope he isn''t the "one" that brings everything "down".

[max0010]

http://radio.nationalreview.com/betweenthecovers/post/?q=NzRjZTljMjJjMDUzZTA1ZWViMWQ2Y2ZhMzBmZjYwZmE=
A case against Barack Obama by radio National Review...in case you do not read the book. Be informed before you Elect this man to be in charge of your life.

[erasmus81]

"Already coming down, pay attention to what is going on these days." Posted by azure11 at 12:17 PM : Aug 09, 2008

I have been paying attention. You think things are bad now? They can get a whole lot worse if you don''t have the right person in the White House. You really think that Obama has the spine to be able to do what has to be done? He is too soft.

"Obama represents the best chance at reforming the way politics are done in this country."

I guess from what you have to pick from, he''s better than the rest. I think you better hope that some other candidates step in to run before it''s too late though.

[stevenga777]

NBC blacksout Olympic ceremony in America - American fans angered
Aug 8, 4:32 pm EDT

Buzz Up Print
NEW YORK (AFP) - The rest of the world might have been dazzled by the Beijing Olympic opening ceremony but angry US viewers clamoring for a glimpse of the spectacle on Friday were made to wait after a media blackout.

US network NBC, which owns exclusive rights to Olympics coverage in the United States, refrained from showing the opening ceremony live, preferring instead to delay coverage by 12 hours for a prime-time evening slot.

A spokesman for NBC, which paid nearly 900 million dollars for Olympic broadcast rights, said the decision was taken to maximize viewing figures.

"It''''s a business decision," the spokesman told AFP. "It protects our affiliates, our advertisers, and shows it to the largest number of viewers possible," he added.

Bizarrely, the co-hosts of NBC''''s breakfast television show barely mentioned the ongoing ceremony during their broadcast, which was reportedly pre-taped.

[jumkey]

You''''ll be the first one to gripe when this kind of freedom is squashed by the likes of Obama....boooooo hooooooo.

Posted by likeitis5050

You know, it''s always amusing when wingnuts express paranoia about liberals "squashing" freedom while they themselves are actively doing so.

I''d like to join the chorus and tell you to **** you freedom hating rightwing idiot.

Thanks.

[tawpdawg111]

Experts are in general agreement....drilling more holes will never have a significant impact on oil prices. In the short term we can tap our reserves as has been done before to reign in speculation.

BUT:

On July 24th, 2008

H. Res. 6578, the Consumer Energy Supply Act of 2008 was rushed before congress seeking to provide quick relief at the pump, something that drilling absolutely CANNOT do. The measure received strong majority support in a House vote of 268 to 157, but failed to receive the two-thirds necessary to pass under suspension of the rules. All Democrats present voted for the measure, while 157 Republicans voted against it. The measure would direct the release of a small amount of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, bringing down gas prices and sending a strong message to energy speculators.

The American people have paid for more than 700 million barrels of oil to be held in this government stockpile. At significant taxpayer expense, the SPR is currently 97 percent full - its highest level ever.

You can see the names of the 157 representatives who voted for BIG oil interests over yours with this link. And guess what.....you''''ll NEVER believe it!....

ALL 157 are members of the Great Oil Party. Stunned?

See who they are here and contribute to their opponents soon and often!

http://www.govtrack.us/congres
s/vote.xpd?vote=h2008-527&sort=vote

[oneworldusa]

If McCain can take off and do a book tour, then I think it''s only fair that Obama be able to go to his home-state for a few weeks, visit with his elderly grandmother who raised him and let America enjoy the spirit of the Olympics for a while.

[larysinclair]

Vacation? Come on,..Obama is in Hawaii trying to get a new birth certificate, since the one on the daily Kos and his "fight the smears" website have now been proven to be forged!!
I''m sure he is also checking on granny to make sure that she is properly "Tied up" so as to not be able to speak to the media about her lying grandson!!

[caliguy55]

George W. Bush is already the "one", who has brought everyone and everything down. Obama 08!!!

[nextgenman]

Posted by LARYSINCLAIR at 12:51 PM : Aug 09, 2008
-------

Maybe McLiverspot can go back to his home country on Panama and get his.....

[larysinclair]

Posted by nextGenMan at 01:06 PM : Aug 09, 2008
------------------------------------------------------
Your ignorance is showing. McCain has already delivered an ACTUAL birth certificate in paper form, besides BOTH of his parents were American citizens when he was born,..he is automatically a US citizen unlike Obama,...do some research before you spew your ignorant Axelrod talking points!!

[wolfi872]

OBAMA HAS LEFT THE BUILDING!

[vastr-wcon]

.
Remember Kerry''s wind-surfing vacation in lieu of campaigning?

I guess all shallow, arrogant, platitude-spouting, elitist, inexperienced, narcissistic, flip-flopping gas-bags would rather vacation than work hard. Hopefully, the voters will treat the new Kerry just as did for the original.

/

[jenny1233-2009]

OBAMA can afford a vacation.






McCain''t has yet to give an inspiring speech and stumbles while reading a teleprompter...........

Mc Cain''t is an old old old political hack who per his own words "voted with Bush 90% of the time".

Mc Cain''t wants 45 nuclear power plants. When the utilities float bond issues to pay for nuclear power plants the interest and principal costs as they come due on the bonds is passed along in higher utility bills to the consumer. Also utility plants take 4-5 years to construct, the consumer (that''s us) pays for the construction before the power is even available.

Mc Cain''t would offer what Bush has offered and that is not acceptable. Tax breaks for the wealthy are breaking this country.

[rafterman1]

Regarding this birth certificate garbage, McCain supporters are so depserate that they think the only way they can win is by getting Obama disqualified. Pathetic.

[rafterman1]

===I guess all shallow, arrogant, platitude-spouting, elitist, inexperienced, narcissistic, flip-flopping gas-bags would rather vacation than work hard.===
Posted by VastR-WCon

You know, you''re right. Exactly how many days has Bush spent on vacation at Crawford?

[jerry256]

Obama WILL be the next President.
He deserves this vacation more than anyone.
BTW, Congress is in recess, so he isn''t supposed to be in Washington.

Obama is as American as Apple Pie.
He has the roots of Kansas home grown grandparents.

The only elitist running for President is John McShame, born into wealth, ditched his sick wife and remarried into greater wealth.

When Obama names Joe Biden as VP, it will be ALL OVER.
Biden will put McSame in his place like he did to Rudy.

Obama/Biden 08

[jarisha]

Sigh. You can''t just say Obama''s birth certificate is forged. See, there''s something called "proof".
Anywho, I for one think that Obama''s doing the right thing for his family and the country by spending time with them.
McCain left his first wife who waited for him while a POW. Everyone knows that he was having an affair with Cindy before the divorce. It''s been "proven" (because I say it has).

[ioweign]

===I guess all shallow, arrogant, platitude-spouting, elitist, inexperienced, narcissistic, flip-flopping gas-bags would rather vacation than work hard.===
Posted by VastR-WCon

You know, you''''re right. Exactly how many days has Bush spent on vacation at Crawford?

Posted by Rafterman1 at 02:44 PM : Aug 09, 2008

Boosh is on course to beat the all-time leader - Reagan in vacation time...

[jdubs63]

WHO CARES?

[txgrouch2006]

Wow, Obama in a Hawaii shirt! Obama is COOL!!!

Unless he picks Hillary. Or ANYONE named "Clinton."

Then he''ll be a goat.

Now, a goat would still have a 50-50 chance of beating McCain.

But he''ll have to do it without my vote. I''m voting for Obama UNLESS there''s a Clinton on the ticket with him.

[jsilver2th]

It''s JOHN McCAIN that was born outside the US in an Hispanic Country... The US Constitution is clear only native born can be US President... They had a phony blue ribbon panel of lawyers say it is alright but this has never been tested in court--

[wellhell3]

It''''s JOHN McCAIN that was born outside the US in an Hispanic Country... The US Constitution is clear only native born can be US President... They had a phony blue ribbon panel of lawyers say it is alright but this has never been tested in court--


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jsilver2th at 03:21 PM : Aug 09, 2008

Oh, I think it related more to the fact that John McCain had TWO US citizens as parents, and was born on an American military base while his father was serving his country...but honk on!

[wellhell3]

Obscamma pro''bly went over there to make a swift birth certificate connection...and to try to see if he could find a scam showing his mother lived there at the time of his birth. LMAO!

[jeffstersf]

so, you idiot VastR-WCon, you''re equating Kerry windsurfing to Obama going to see his grandmother? Man, you wing-nuts are really desperate. You''re going to have a miserable Nov. 4, thank God.

[usais11]

NO Politics uh? What BS! Aloha Obama, can also mean ''goodbye''

[samthetvcat]

---"Sen. Obama will have a landslide victory this fall and the reason is simple: we all want a better life and he offers it"---
Posted by copyat5

I''m still undecided, but leaning Democratic. What bothers me about Obama, is that are we so desperate to win we''re just voting for this guy because he''s the Democrat on the ticket?

Like how badly do we want to win and how much are we willing to overlook? What if it turned out he was just like John Edwards? He''d probably still win, wouldn''t he - because McCain''s got a more than one ''John Edwards'' type scandal in his closet too, and because Bill Clinton had stuff in his closet as well.

I don''t know . . .

[samthetvcat]

Hypothetical 2: If Hillary had something on Barack and she released it, you think popular opinion would switch from Barack to Hillary at the last minute?

I''m thinking we probably wouldn''t because people want to win and scandal is hurtful to the ticket, especially since Bill was a cheater himself (?)

I don''t know . . .

[jschmidt27]

Nice to see Obama enjoying himself, while most people cut back on vacations to pay for $4 gas and try and figure how they will heat their homes this winter. Maybe he should be back in DC trying to come up wit an energy bill that allow drilling. Dems do not care about what people have to pay.

[jschmidt27]

Did I mention Obama is the most unqualified, inexperienced candidate with no leadership credentials in at least 50 years.

[downsteamjim]

To Rafterman: Do think that winning by disqualifying your opponents is unethical? If so you cannot be an Obama supporter. After all, he won his first office by disqualifying all his opponents.

[downsteamjim]

George Washington [the first president of the U.S.] was not born in the United States. He was born in a British Colony. At the time of McCain''s birth, the Panama Canal Zone was part of the United States [but not Obama''s 58th state]. The Canal Zone was given away by Jimuh Carter.

[rafterman1]

===To Rafterman: Do think that winning by disqualifying your opponents is unethical? If so you cannot be an Obama supporter. After all, he won his first office by disqualifying all his opponents.===
Posted by downsteamjim

Disqualifying opponents is a cr@p way to win. But I''m not claiming Obama is perfect, just better than the alternative.