hawaiian vacation

The President’s Hawaiian Christmas Dilemma

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I just read this http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/200679-obamas-hawaii-christmas-dilemma and it made me so ridiculously angry I had to write something. If only President Obama’s staff would A. Stand up to him and tell him that even having his family go to Hawaii without him (oh, the humanity) looks bad and B. Keep at least the president himself in D.C. this Christmas.

Dear White House Office of Communications,

Were you perhaps absent the day they taught communications at school? Have you never seen an episode of The West Wing?

Do you not realize when you allow stories to be written before each vacation about will he or won’t he get to go on vacation to (insert expensive posh locale here) it makes the president look like an asshole?

You realize by allowing the scenario to present itself where White House press corps reporters are asking in the White House briefing room if the president will be able to join his family in Hawaii it make the whole first family look like assholes and woefully out of touch, right? Seriously. In this lean (read: terrifying) holiday season American families are asking the questions like, will we be able to put a nice holiday meal on the table and can we afford gifts for the kids? NO ONE aside from the 1% are concerned with whether or not dear old dad will be able to join them in Hawaii. *beats head on desk*

I swear to God if you you’d just for once stop and think to yourselves that perhaps it would be a good idea to have the first family (all of them) stay in D.C. and have Christmas at home as a show of solidarity with the millions of families who can barely afford Hot Wheels for their children this year. Do you know the positive publicity you’d get from the first family canceling their annual trip to Hawaii so dear old dad can work through the Christmas holiday?

The president’s approval ratings are in the toilet. STOP giving the press puff pieces such as this to write. Keep him and the first family at home and perhaps they’ll look a little less like they are thumbing their noses at those of us who may or may not be paid less in 2012 thanks to the Republicans’ stranglehold on all D.C. politics.

At this point if there were another democrat to vote for I would because this administration is ineffectual and so obviously clueless.

Love,

A frustrated and annoyed democrat

(I vote)

Change We Can Believe In? A Hawaiian Vacation for the President. No More Unemployment for You.

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The rich get richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class works harder to stay afloat. This is change we can believe in?

 

Good evening kids. I’m taking a break from chronicling my recovery to rant and rave about my favorite topic, politics. 

Me and the hubs caught colds over the Thanksgiving holiday so today was mostly spent on the couch watching CNN. It was a quiet day until I turned my attention to the ticker running at the bottom of the screen. It read, Obama may delay Hawaiian vacation over tax fight. 

*Kaboom*

You hear that? It’s the sound of my head exploding? Holy Mother of God! Are they kidding me? Seriously. Am I supposed to feel bad for him?

Just yesterday he announced a 2 year pay freeze for all civilian federal employees. Today 2 million unemployed Americans will begin losing their unemployment benefits if the Senate doesn’t vote to extend the federal extended benefits program. Oh and let’s not forget about those folks who have been unemployed for 99 weeks or longer, who no longer receive unemployment benefits and who the government no longer considers unemployed.

There are families losing their houses, families struggling to put food on the table, families who won’t be able to put gifts under the Christmas Tree this year and President Obama may have to delay his Hawaiian vacation? Seriously. Are they kidding me? I have no words for this. I wonder if he or Congress or the Senate have stopped to think just how many Americans could use a vacation? I wonder if any of them have stopped to think of the families that could use a break from the uncertainty and the fear? Will we be able to keep the house? Can we keep the bills paid? Should we take the kids out of parochial school and put them in public school? Should we try to sell the house? Will it sell? How do we keep afloat? 

As I stared at my TV screen in disbelief I wasn’t sure if I should be outraged or heartbroken. Maybe both? If the White House communications office wants this to be seen as a noble gesture they are seriously mistaken. Either President Obama and his staff have not one ounce of political savvy or they just don’t care how it looks to the millions of Americans just trying to make ends meet. 

The theme of many of President Obama’s speeches both as a candidate and as president has been sacrifice. I’m curious. What is it that he and his family have sacrificed?