Presidents On Vacation
The following is a weekly 60 Minutes commentary by CBS News correspondent Andy Rooney.
Being president of the United States must be a terrible job, but one of the worst things about being president is that someone keeps track of every little thing you do. I'd hate to have someone following me around all day counting everything I did, particularly when I'm on vacation.
President Bush has made 66 trips to his Texas ranch since taking office. He'll pass Ronald Reagan's record of having spent 436 days away from the White House.
Many of President Bush's critics are being critical of him now for all the time he spends away from his office but I'm not critical or envious at all because for half the money in the U.S. Treasury you couldn't get me to go to Crawford, Texas, at this time of year. When it gets cold at night there, the temperature can dip way down -- sometimes below a hundred degrees.
Vacations are pretty easy for our presidents. They don't have to go through security at the airport. They don't have to take off their shoes or empty their pockets. All presidents have to do when they leave Washington is climb the steps of Air Force One, smile and wave goodbye to us.
Eisenhower played a lot of golf on his vacation.
The first George Bush played golf. Bill Clinton played golf, but not very well.
President Kennedy took his vacations at the family compound on Cape Cod. It was always called "a compound." Whatever that is.
Lyndon Johnson took off 484 days in five and a half years in office. That's a world record for a president's vacation. Lyndon also rode his horse on vacation. Reagan looked good on a horse, of course.
Several presidents have gone to Florida for their vacation. Warren Harding was the first but after that Harry Truman went to Florida often. He wore his Florida clothes down there.
Jimmy Carter often went to his peanut farm in Plains, Ga., but in four years Jimmy took off only 79 days -- and that's another record for a president. Jimmy was a good sport, too. He played softball with the reporters.
Bill Clinton went with the smart crowd to Martha's Vineyard.
President Bush is back in the Oval Office now so everything ought to be all right again in Washington.
Written By Andy Rooney