Althouse: Obama takes his wife on a very expensive date.

May 31, 2009

Obama takes his wife on a very expensive date.

To dinner and a show — in New York City.

An outrageous expenditure and inconvenience or fun and helpful for New York?

97 comments:

rhhardin said...: Obama's fifteen minutes are up.; 5/31/09, 7:43 AM
Anonymous said...: He's only doing what all car company senior execs do.; 5/31/09, 7:43 AM
AllenS said...: Obama said this: “You can’t get corporate jets. You can’t go take a trip to Las Vegas or go down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayer’s dime".

It's time for him to live up to his own expectations of others.; 5/31/09, 8:02 AM
ricpic said...: That black fringed outfit Michelle wore for their "date" is the first attractive fashion statement she's made.; 5/31/09, 8:07 AM
AllenS said...: Helpful for New York? What did it cost the city in deploying all of those police officers. Does New York City have a lot of money? I guess it's not an expensive date, if somebody else pays for it.; 5/31/09, 8:09 AM
Jason (the commenter) said...: "I am taking my wife to New York City because I promised her during the campaign that I would take her to a Broadway show after it was all finished."

Isn't this the exact same thing the automobile and bank executives were criticized for doing? Didn't Obama want them to pay the government back for their unnecessary travel expenses and even step down?

Complete hypocrisy.

Oh, and I'm sure plenty of Broadway shows tour through Washington D.C.; 5/31/09, 8:14 AM
Balfegor said...: It's outrageous and expensive, sure, but he's the President -- when he goes anywhere, it's going to be outrageous and expensive. It would be cheapest if a President spent his entire Presidency in a secure, undisclosed location, and addressed people entirely through giant TV screens and holograms and suchlike. Like the Emperor in Star Wars. At any rate, when set against the trillions he wants us to spend, it's pocket change. Let the man have his fun.; 5/31/09, 8:15 AM
dbp said...: It was a perfect missed opportunity to set a good example and use public mass-transit. The President and wife should have taken an Acela train from DC to New York.

I'm sure Joe Biden could have offered advice on how to get to the Amtrac station via the Metro.; 5/31/09, 8:15 AM
Jennifer said...: I wouldn't have a philosophical problem with the date. But it does seem a bit hypocritical after encouraging the public to flagellate the investment types for daring to - gasp! - golf. Kind of doubting that "I promised my wife" would have been accepted as a valid explanation for anyone else.; 5/31/09, 8:27 AM
paul a'barge said...: And the hypocrisy just keeps rolling along ...; 5/31/09, 8:27 AM
jayne_cobb said...: Meh,

Doesn't make me hate him any more, doesn't make me like him any more.

Anything the president does is expensive, and if I'm going to get irked over the trips he takes I'll focus on his recent fundraising efforts in Nevada and California (which were on the taxpayer's dime).

Ultimately I'll just use this in future arguments about his global warming policies.; 5/31/09, 8:35 AM
Tank said...: He can waste ten or twenty million a year on himself and his wife, if he would only stop flushing trillions of dollars we don't have down the toilet.

Get some perspective for crying out loud.; 5/31/09, 8:46 AM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Balfegor : At any rate, when set against the trillions he wants us to spend, it's pocket change. Let the man have his fun.

It would be awesome if the Chinese President criticized Obama for his reckless spending at China's expense.

If I were a reporter I'd do a poll in China every time the President came up with an idea to see if they agreed or disagree with how the money they loaned us is being used.; 5/31/09, 8:48 AM
hdhouse said...: i've read the comments so far.

you guys - well some of you - are wierd.; 5/31/09, 8:52 AM
holdfast said...: Blogger ricpic said... "That black fringed outfit Michelle wore for their "date" is the first attractive fashion statement she's made."

It made her ass look like one of those mini-satellite dishes, which is great because it usually looks like those big TV-studio kind.

If you think it is unfair to pick on her appearance - well, I wouldn't do it if it was not for half of the media outlets in the US trying to convince me that she is some sort of mega-beauty.; 5/31/09, 8:58 AM
KCFleming said...: USA Today reported that federal obligations hit a record $546,668 per household in 2008, quadruple what the average U.S. household owes for all mortgages, car loans, credit cards and other debt combined.

The government took on $6.8 trillion in new obligations in 2008, pushing the total owed to a record $63.8 trillion.

So sure, go ahead; spend the printed money while the rubes still take it, before we have to haul around wheellbarrows full to buy bread.; 5/31/09, 9:00 AM
Paco Wové said...: ...and you appear to be brain-damaged, hd. What's your point?

As to the issue at hand — Jayne C. is right. Meh. Whatever. Don't care.; 5/31/09, 9:01 AM
The Dude said...: He won.

hdhouse wrote "you guys - well some of you - are wierd."

We write using standard English, so that must appear weird to you.; 5/31/09, 9:07 AM
The Dude said...: hdhouse retort "you add nothing" in 3, 2, 1...; 5/31/09, 9:07 AM
MnMark said...: Just another example, though a mild one, of the man's hubris.

I have a gift, Harry. said Obama.

As a smart black man who speaks English properly, he's been told by liberal whites his whole life that he is exceptional. And from what I see, he has deeply internalized that belief. We're all just actors in his play. As a conservative, I don't get it. I look at him and I see a garden-variety, cliche-spouting leftist. If his skin were white, he would be nothing exceptional, just another Feingold: smart, articulate, leftist.

On one level he knows he has to, for political reasons, keep the smugness in check. But underneath I think he is firmly convinced that he IS the messiah, that he DOES know better than the rest of us, and sometimes that arrogance slips out against his better judgment ("they cling to guns or religion", for example).

So, on a whim, he felt like an evening in New York. A humbler man might have thought, "these are hard times for a lot of people. Our budget deficit is exploding. Unemployment is high and rising. Houses are being foreclosed at record rates. I need to set an example of frugality." But Obama just can't quite keep that sense of entitlement at bay. He is the President, after all...if he wants an evening in New York, he should have it. He knows from experience that all he has to do is flash a big crinkly-eyed, toothy grin at the cameras and he can do no wrong.

Another sign of his arrogance is the way he gets irritated when he is questioned. His dismissal of opposition to Sotomayer as "nonsense" is one recent example.

I'm afraid of what price the country is ultimately going to have to pay while we learn that he is not all that he thinks he is.; 5/31/09, 9:10 AM
Anonymous said...: One thing is for sure: "Joe Turner’s Come and Gone" is almost sure to benefit from this publicity.; 5/31/09, 9:10 AM
Invisible Man said...: Another sign of his arrogance is the way he gets irritated when he is questioned. His dismissal of opposition to Sotomayer as "nonsense" is one recent example.Yes, because of course, being irritated that Right-wingers shriek and hiss at every junction, like this for example, makes no sense at all. He should definitely take most of his days up debating your faux outrage, instead of actually spending his days worrying about things that matter.; 5/31/09, 9:16 AM
ricpic said...: Kings don't go the frugal route; black kings in particular.; 5/31/09, 9:18 AM
ricpic said...: "...spending his days worrying..."

Worrying? This puffed-up vacuity? Ha!; 5/31/09, 9:22 AM
Jason (the commenter) said...: NKVD : He won.

And to the winner goes the spoils.

Obama has instituted a spoils system; nice to see where his Chicago background is taking him.; 5/31/09, 9:25 AM
Ron said...: Man, I thought all those choppers and cops were for me! I thought, 'goddamn midtown!', and then went back to Newark...; 5/31/09, 9:27 AM
Sorin said...: From page 2 of the sayings of THE ONE: "Do as I say, not as I do". Does anyone know the contents of page 1?; 5/31/09, 9:37 AM
SteveR said...: Imagine someone working hard and wanting to enjoy the frivilous advantages of success.; 5/31/09, 9:42 AM
Balfegor said...: Another sign of his arrogance is the way he gets irritated when he is questioned. His dismissal of opposition to Sotomayer as "nonsense" is one recent example.

My favourite is still that press conference from the campaign when he whined that he'd already answered, like, eight questions, and could he go home now? He's better about that now, though -- has sort of sunk in that he does, actually, have to answer questions from time to time.; 5/31/09, 9:58 AM
MayBee said...: Imagine someone working hard and wanting to enjoy the frivilous advantages of success.

I know, right? Then imagine working hard and knowing the person in the White House cares that you want to enjoy some of the frivolous advantages of your success, so he is careful how he spends your money.; 5/31/09, 9:59 AM
former law student said...: There are two possible explanations:

Republicans don't think Obama deserves the safety precautions taken for Presidents ever since Ford -- I guess they'd rather take their chances with Joe Biden.

Or, Republicans think all Presidents should "hunker in the bunker" i.e. adopt the Rose Garden strategy of Nixon and Ford. Even so, I can't imagine that St. Ronald O' Reagan never took his best girl Nancy, to a Broadway show in his two terms.; 5/31/09, 10:07 AM
SteveR said...: Then imagine working hard and knowing the person in the White House cares that you want to enjoy some of the frivolous advantages of your success, so he is careful how he spends your money.Well now you are expecting too much.; 5/31/09, 10:08 AM
I'm Full of Soup said...: The smart decision would have been to coordinate their NY date with some made-up presidential offcial business trip to NYC.

Arrogace won out here. Obama can't control his.

Maybe MSNBC or NYT will conduct poll asking if this was a wasteful trip? [I won't hold my breath- heh]; 5/31/09, 10:10 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: "You can't take a trip to Las Vegas or down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayers' dime," Obama said.

Apparently there is a loophole in Obama's Travel Permit Program; Bailout CEO's can come to New York.

Vegas still off limits.; 5/31/09, 10:14 AM
MayBee said...: So, FLS, dinner in DC or the DC area wasn't an option?
It's either fly to New York just for dinner or no dinner at all?

Or, as AJ Lynch said, have the dinner on a night when they are already in New York? Michelle was just there a few weeks ago. Barack was just in LA. They couldn't have had a date night then?

Flying to New York just for dinner is Tom and Katie behavior, not first couple behavior. Not in a recession like this one.; 5/31/09, 10:17 AM
former law student said...: So, FLS, dinner in DC or the DC area wasn't an option?

Moving Broadway to DC for an evening would likely cost more than moving the President to Manhattan.

Apparently there is a loophole in Obama's Travel Permit Program; Bailout CEO's can come to New York.

If you're bothered by a President's criticizing recipients of government largesse for living high on the taxpayer's dime while enjoying the same luxury, listen to this:

St. Ronald O'Reagan criticized "welfare queens" for driving Cadillacs while he himself rode in a brand-new Cadillac Fleetwood, provided to him at taxpayer expense.

Surely he could have ridden around in a gently used Ford Maverick.; 5/31/09, 10:23 AM
MayBee said...: FLS-
You said there were two choices.
Republicans don't think the president deserves safety precautions, or Republicans think the President should "hunker in the bunker".
What does moving Broadway to DC have to do with either of those options?

Was there some reason the Obamas had to go to a Broadway show last night?
Couldn't they have escaped the bunker in some other, less ostentatious fashion, while still having the security he needed?; 5/31/09, 10:27 AM
KCFleming said...: Spending other people's money is just plain fun!

$1B an hour.
Wheeeeee!

"Surely he could have ridden around in a gently used Ford Maverick."

At least he cut taxes in the meanwhile.

Now the next 2 generations are so far in the hole they won't be able to afford a used Maverick.; 5/31/09, 10:28 AM
former law student said...: Was there some reason the Obamas had to go to a Broadway show last night?

To fulfill a campaign promise. Shouldn't Presidents be held to their word?

What does moving Broadway to DC ...

That was your suggestion; I merely responded to it.

Spending other people's money is just plain fun!

I know. I thought it was outrageous when Nixon ordered the White House air conditioning turned up so that he could enjoy a fire in the fireplace. The same Nixon who ordered a bowling alley built in the White House, as if he couldn't have gone to the local AMF.; 5/31/09, 10:34 AM
former law student said...: At least he [Reagan] cut taxes in the meanwhile.

Now the next 2 generations are so far in the hole

Reagan is not your poster boy for deficit reduction. His tax cuts reversed three decades of decreasing the National Debt.; 5/31/09, 10:37 AM
I'm Full of Soup said...: Pogo:

You exaggerate- it is only $2 per hour. Heh.

http://theringleader.blogspot.com/search?q=spending+per+hour; 5/31/09, 10:44 AM
Joseph said...: I have to believe Althouse posted this with some irony. Commenters seem to be lacking irony.

If people can get all hot and bothered about the president going on a date with his wife, then, really, they'll get hot and bothered about anything you throw at them.; 5/31/09, 10:48 AM
MayBee said...: Was there some reason the Obamas had to go to a Broadway show last night?

To fulfill a campaign promise. Shouldn't Presidents be held to their word?

I don't recall this campaign promise. I believe this was a husband promise. And yes, he could have held to his word back when it was him paying for it. He had from early November to late January to do just that.

The Obamas I remember on the campaign trail were all about having trouble paying for arugula and student loans. I don't remember the high-flying Obamas.

What does moving Broadway to DC ...

That was your suggestion; I merely responded to it.

?? I said no such thing. I said they could have eaten dinner in DC.; 5/31/09, 10:49 AM
Palladian said...: "If people can get all hot and bothered about the president going on a date with his wife, then, really, they'll get hot and bothered about anything you throw at them."

Do you regularly pay for heterosexual couples to fly to New York for dates?; 5/31/09, 10:54 AM
DADvocate said...: Obama's not just an elitist but a hypocritical, elitist jet-setter. The economy's in the dumps. High unemployment. The Kennedy Center's not good enough.

Let them eat cake.; 5/31/09, 11:17 AM
Anonymous said...: "It's good to be king."; 5/31/09, 11:18 AM
I'm Full of Soup said...: The extent of the MSM coverage will determine the wisdom of this dinner date.

My local paper reported it on Page A-10 in an AP wire report of maybe 100 words. That damns Obama's judgment by offering very scant coverage.; 5/31/09, 11:28 AM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.; 5/31/09, 11:32 AM
The Dude said...: fengfk2008 said...
中醫減重...
花蓮民宿

And, as usual, he made more sense than hdhouse.; 5/31/09, 11:34 AM
KCFleming said...: fls,

Pointing out other needless extravagences isn't a defense of them. It's simply more proof that the gummint needs to be a ssmall as possible, to prohibit this kind of bullshit, especially when, at least according to Nobel economist Krugman, we're in a Depression.; 5/31/09, 11:37 AM
EnigmatiCore said...: There is something to be said about President Obama's hypocrisy here.

""Show some restraint," Obama said he told the executives, according to an interview he taped Friday with Bob Schieffer of CBS News. "Show that you get that this is a crisis and everybody has to make sacrifices."

So he and Michele did not heed his command.

That said, we are talking about the President here. While the CEO of a company is a position of prestige, it isn't the Presidency. That we have to pick up the tab for him to be able to go to a play, even if it is a bit of an extravagance, does not bother me much.

What does bother me is that if this was a Republican President, with all other details being the same, the usual suspects would be going apenuts.

Usual suspects in the press, and here.; 5/31/09, 11:41 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Now, I can't delete the spam!; 5/31/09, 11:48 AM
Fred4Pres said...: President's need vacations and Michelle does not seem to be a Camp David kind of girl. But the hypocrisy of the media in attacking Bush over going to Crawford and not criticizing Obama at all for this sort of thing is remarkable. Let's see what happens over time.; 5/31/09, 11:49 AM
The Dude said...: Sure you can - my copy of it can stand on its own.

Chop away - it's your blog...; 5/31/09, 11:51 AM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Maybe this post needs an "Obama is like a bank executive" tag.; 5/31/09, 12:08 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: Let me translate the spam for you:

"I am spam. We may all be spam."; 5/31/09, 12:13 PM
Richard Fagin said...: Pogo, eventually you won't even be allowed to BUY a used Maverick under this administration. I guess I need to go out and look for one before that happens.

FLS, we Republicans think the President is entitled to and needs to have every security measure afforded every other President or as provided by law. We just think he's a much bigger narcissist than Bill Clinton, and Bill couldn't hold a candle to Obama in the "do as I say not as I do" department.; 5/31/09, 12:28 PM
Richard Fagin said...: ....and Pogo, it's not just Nobel laureate economist Krugman, its Former Enron Advisor Krugman. HT The Wall St. Journal.; 5/31/09, 12:30 PM
OhioAnne said...: I think that one of the problems of the Obama administration is that everything seems to "have" to be done right away.

Over 4 or 8 years, I have no doubt other presidents have done something similiar and it has gone completely unnoticed. Or was that just something I saw on "West Wing" reruns on Bravo recently? ;-)

But with President Obama, everything seems to "need" to be done right away. Many people were ready to give him 100 days to staff his administration and find out where Afghanistan was on the map. He, instead, wanted to solve both wars, the economic crisis, health care and fix the problems he sees in the climate in the first year.

It was beginning to make me wonder if he had found a different office to run for and needed to get all those tasks done first and/or what he really had planned for his last three years of his administration.

Given his excessive preaching to the rest of us about how we should live our lives, his trip was ridiculous in these economic times. Over the greater span of time (and without his preaching) it was nothing that would bother me.; 5/31/09, 12:43 PM
Fred4Pres said...: Perhaps President O should have taken the first lady to Up. An excellent film. My wife cried. I got a bit weepy too. and the kids liked it.

As a completely different alternative, Ace suggests this choice.; 5/31/09, 12:47 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: "Enron consultant" Paul Krugman. Heh. If Enron was still around, they would be the ones who devised and were selling this "cap & trade" boondoggle.; 5/31/09, 1:33 PM
Ralph L said...: Is the National Theater on Penn. Ave. still open? They could have walked there.; 5/31/09, 1:37 PM
Suzie Nolen Bennett said...: How many times did "W" fly to Texas and back on the taxpayers' dime? While still drawing presidential salary as he trimmed trees at his ranch?

If it's fair for one POTUS to take a weekend trip with the wife, or to take a month-long vacation, it's fair for ALL of them.; 5/31/09, 2:11 PM
TS said...: "How many times did "W" fly to Texas and back on the taxpayers' dime? While still drawing presidential salary as he trimmed trees at his ranch?"

You miss the point, Suzie Nolen Bennett. He's been castigating executives around the country about taking these types of trips, and now as the Chief Executive, he does the same.

Do as I say, not as I do.; 5/31/09, 2:45 PM
hombre said...: FLS wrote: St. Ronald O'Reagan criticized "welfare queens" for driving Cadillacs while he himself rode in a brand-new Cadillac Fleetwood, provided to him at taxpayer expense.

Suzie ... wrote: How many times did "W" fly to Texas and back on the taxpayers' dime? While still drawing presidential salary as he trimmed trees at his ranch?

If you Obots are going to do PeeWee Herman ("I know you are, but what am I?"), you could make an effort to find something analogous in kind or in cost.

Credit to Oblahblah for saving us money. Instead of taking one of the larger planes, he took three smaller planes. Sheesh!

I repeat: He's a narcissist supported by dupes.; 5/31/09, 2:49 PM
Bruce Hayden said...: "A bit earlier, your pooler asked Josh Earnest, deputy press secretary, how much this trip costs taxpayers. He said other reporters had asked and he 'didn't anticipate being able to provide a cost estimate tonight.'"

Anyone surprised at that?

Well, at least he didn't take one of his 747s. I was watching a show on AF1 this morning (probably on Nat. Geo.) and flying the big planes is an extremely expensive and personal intensive undertaking. The pre-flight briefings alone seemed to have 50 or so AF personnel involved, mostly officers. And while you sometimes see the figures for how much fuel it takes to fly the 747s, you probably never see the hundreds of AF personnel dedicated to maintaining and flying them.

One thing that was not reported was that they invariably shut down the airspace around AF-1 when it is airborne, and that meant it was shut down at JFK for a period of time at both ends of his junket into NYC.; 5/31/09, 3:24 PM
Anonymous said...: Do we know whether the government will be reimbursed by the DNC or from Obama's campaign funds for some of the cost of this trip? This was a personal trip and not business related, and so I expect that at least part of the cost will eventually be paid back. Of course, the full cost includes more than the flight of the Presidential plane and helicopter. It also includes the overtime for NYC police, the huge contingent of military personnel and Secret Service that preceded and accompanied them, and the cost of transporting the President's mobile command center to NYC. Most of those costs will probably be buried in various agency budgets and never be reimbursed. Hope. Change.; 5/31/09, 3:32 PM
Methadras said...: Let them eat cake and go to Scores.; 5/31/09, 4:15 PM
TitusIsAbsolutelyGlowing said...: I love you all today and agree with you on everything.

Today is a beautiful day.

You are all special creatures of God.

Thank you so much for being a part of my life and me for being a part of your life. I hope we are all enriched by this relationship that we have.; 5/31/09, 4:20 PM
Deb said...: As a completely different alternative, Ace suggests this choice.Yowee. More biscuits, Maw.; 5/31/09, 4:24 PM
Ralph L said...: TitusIsAbsolutelyGlowing said
Yeah, it's warm here, too.; 5/31/09, 4:40 PM
Anonymous said...: fls,

There are all sorts of nice DVDs of Broadway shows. Not only that, but if you buy them in this country you can actually play them on locally-purchased DVD equipment.

I rather imagine the carbon footprint would be smaller, for that matter, if he got the entire understudy cast of whatever show they attended down to the White House via Amtrak, complete with makeshift sets, and made a private evening of it.; 5/31/09, 5:05 PM
Ralph L said...: Cleopatra famously ground up a huge pearl, poured in her wine goblet and drank it. Typical woman, too extravagant to eat her pearls before wine.; 5/31/09, 5:59 PM
JAL said...: SteveR said @ 9:42 AM
Imagine someone working hard and wanting to enjoy the frivilous advantages of success.

I can imagine that.

But I do not really see that Brack Obama has worked hard to get where he is. Really. I have friends who are CPAs -- not CEOs --and they work 60 hour weeks all the time. They are accountable to a variety of people.

I think it's clear community organizer (Read: Grant Money Spender)/ Senator Obama did not work all that hard.

This "frivolous advantage(s) of success" are not the result of his personal ability to produce a concept or product -- except of himself. The success is the result of getting elected by some people of the United State of America -- and getting paid by all the tax paying people of the USA to defend the republic. Is he allowd to have fun? Of course.

But you know, there are limitations which come with the office of POTUS. Too bad.

The tone deaf tune keeps going on. He won, therefore inconveniencing NYers (who of course are described as "cheering" for him) was no big whoop.

So. Whose dime was it? I'd like to see the full expenses of the city of NY, the crew, the prep, the Secret Service hours and transport and care and feeding of the cast of hundreds.

What size were the other planes? They keep an armored car in NYC too? Of course not.

It would have been flown in in on something a HECK of a lot bigger than a Gulfstream 500. Try a C-17 Globmaster, along with the SS support vehicles ....

So. Is Congress going to - [cough] - call him on it? After all they CASTIGATED the automaker CEOS for daring to fly to a Congressional hearing on business in private jets with their companies in the red.

Don't forget -- "“We can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times … and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK,” Obama said.
“That’s not leadership. That’s not going to happen,” he added.

Well it happens for The President, doesn't it. :P; 5/31/09, 6:46 PM
JAL said...: The spokesperson states he "'didn't anticipate being able to provide a cost estimate tonight.'"

So President Obama didn't look at his wife and say -- "We should think about how much this is going to cost, and how it looks. I've been asking people to spend ... (or was it to save?) but I'm not sure this is the way I should demonstrate it."; 5/31/09, 6:54 PM
traditionalguy said...: The man from Chicago is entitled to a visit to the center of Free Market Capitalism that he has triumphed over in 90 days.; 5/31/09, 7:31 PM
Suzie Nolen Bennett said...: Not an "Obot," sorry... you completely missed my point.; 5/31/09, 7:48 PM
SteveR said...: JAL: I forgot to use the sarcasm tag.; 5/31/09, 8:32 PM
Chris said...: Outrageous and fun and helpful.; 5/31/09, 9:21 PM
Mutaman said...: What a great shot in the arm for a wonderful city and what great publicity for vital industries that benefit all New Yorkers- The Theatre and our great restaurants. An investment of $24,000, and a return to NYC of millions in publicity. Boy what small minded morons you people are. No wonder so many people are simply sick of Republicans. What stupidity.; 5/31/09, 9:23 PM
Mark said...: am taking my wife to New York City because I promised her during the campaign that I would take her to a Broadway show after it was all finished.Sorry, this is all finished after he leaves office. In the meantime, he's damned well expected to lead by example, and rightly so.

So yeah, all you banker-bashers, keep on making excuses for your boy king. In the end, you make the case against the compassionate-elitist POV better than any of us Randians ever could.; 5/31/09, 10:04 PM
Jim said...: For all of the supposed brillance of Obama, he does some remarkably stupid things. Why? Because he's done them all along and the press has covered for him. Why shouldn't he get to continue doing stupid things if no one is going to call him out on it?

Forget whether he has the right to do it, of course he does and no one is arguing that. The question is whether he should do it, and unless you have had your lips surgically attached to his posterior then the answer is unquestionably that he should not put on such an ostentatious display of: a) privilege, b) unconcern for the pending bankruptcy of GM on Monday morning, c) record unemployment levels brought on by his irresponsible economic policies, and d) replacing his carbon footprint with a carbon hole.

He will have plenty of opportunities as president to visit NYC on legitimate business, but he chose to fly 3 jets there for no reason other than his sense of entitlement to do so.

He's probably right that the media will continue to cover for him, and so he'll escape the savaging that he deserves for such irresponsible behavior. But stuff like this builds on the public consciousness until one day it reaches an irreversible tipping point. Those who support him should be the first in line to castigate him for being so irresponsible because his ability to enact the Leftist agenda is going to depend in large part on his credibility with the American people. People look at stuff like this and say to themselves: this is not a serious man who takes this country's problems seriously. After all, in the face of all these things his answer is to spend taxpayer dollars to fly his wife to New York while he tells everyone else to tighten their belts. That's not exactly a winning strategy, but hey, if you want to squander your political advantage by defending this sort of thing knock yourselves out. Just don't be surprised at how the upcoming elections turn out....; 5/31/09, 11:24 PM
Mutaman said...: I am irresistibly drawn to the commenters on the old professors blog. Everyday i say you can't outdo yourselves in terms of pettiness and ownright stupidity, and every day you prove me wrong.

Lets see, shelp off to Crawford and ignore a CIA memo that the bad guys are going to blow a hole in Manhatten- no problem. Take the wife out for a night on broadway- the horror. You realy can't make this shit up.; 5/31/09, 11:35 PM
avwh said...: Hey mutaman:
how much longer are you & Obama gonna run against Bush, anyway? Is ANYTHING EVER going to be Obama's responsibility?; 6/1/09, 12:17 AM
Palladian said...: "Boy what small minded morons you people are. No wonder so many people are simply sick of Republicans. What stupidity."

Liberals, for some strange reason, love being serfs. It tingles deep in their gonads when the King and his Consort make a Progress to New York City. O to lick the shit from the King's shoes! O isn't it grand how He shines His light, for a few brief moments, upon their miserable faces! Obama's eyes are blessed stars, inducing peace, subduing wars! O Blessed be, each day and hour, where sweet Obama builds his bower!; 6/1/09, 1:06 AM
OhioAnne said...: "Lets see, shelp off to Crawford and ignore a CIA memo that the bad guys are going to blow a hole in Manhatten- no problem. Take the wife out for a night on broadway- the horror. You realy can't make this shit up."

No, apparently YOU can make this shit up.; 6/1/09, 5:38 AM
Floridan said...: Say what you will, Obama certainly has good judgement in restaurants -- David Barber was won several chef of the year awards recently (although his other restaurant, Blue Hill at Stone Barns, is even better, if the Obamas had dined there they would have had to skip the show).

And he likes Five Guys, too.; 6/1/09, 7:31 AM
The Dude said...: Mutaman - you are raising the standards here - you demonstrate illiteracy in two languages. That makes you twice as smart as hdhouse.; 6/1/09, 7:50 AM
former law student said...: But I do not really see that Brack Obama has worked hard to get where he is.

Well, not as hard as someone whose daddy was President, and whose Grampa was U.S. Senator, to be sure. But he likely worked harder than Bill Clinton, because since Reconstruction, there were hundreds of white Senators but only three black Senators. And one of those was the "twofer" Carol Moseley-Braun.; 6/1/09, 10:39 AM
Unknown said...: The cool bit is all the other would-be-stars who had planned on attending that particular show and were forced WAY out of the line (were they even allowed to drop off in front?).

Otherwise, well, so what? I think I care most that it was reported, as if anyone would care.; 6/1/09, 11:02 AM
Ralph L said...: But he likely worked harder than Bill Clinton
Yeah, ole Bill couldn't play the sleaze card on his opponents without blowback. Getting divorce records unsealed is hard work.

Why do you think his race has anything to do with his work ethic?; 6/1/09, 12:20 PM
CarmelaMotto said...: Oh, so that was what the non-stop drone of low flying helicopters on Sat were about. I was having guests for dinner and I was concerned about the noise. I forgot the One was in town.

Not sure who said it, but there will be PLENTY of opportunities for the One to be in NY on business rather than make this trip alone.

As someone said, forget the cost of flying 3 planes and then a helicopter from the airport to Manhattan. The extra cops and police security to NYC. Sorry FLS, I am guess that is more expensive cops in Crawford. I am just GUESSING that Crawford has fewer security concerns than NYC.

Did anyone see he went out and bought burgers for the West Wing again on Fri too! Such a man of the people!; 6/1/09, 12:58 PM
Mutaman said...: "how much longer are you & Obama gonna run against Bush, anyway?"

Oh yeah I forgot Bush wasn't really a conservative or even a Republican so we can't hold you right wingers responsible for his misdeeds. My mistake.; 6/1/09, 1:15 PM
former law student said...: Yeah, ole Bill couldn't play the sleaze card on his opponents without blowback. Getting divorce records unsealed is hard work.

Not if you're a newspaper and a TV station with a team of lawyers. But what does that have to do with Barack Obama?

Ryan file a bombshell
Ex-wife alleges GOP candidate took her to sex clubs
By John Chase and Liam Ford | Tribune staff reporters
June 22, 2004
1 2 next Republican U.S. Senate nominee Jack Ryan's ex-wife, TV actress Jeri Ryan, accused him of taking her to sex clubs in New York and Paris, where he tried to coerce her into having sex with him in front of strangers, according to records released Monday from the couple's California divorce file.

Jack Ryan denied the allegations when they were made in 2000, when the couple was engaged in a bitter child custody battle a year after their divorce.

The papers were released by California Judge Robert Schnider following his decision last week to unseal portions of the Ryans' divorce file.

Attorneys for the Tribune and WLS-Ch. 7 sought release of the records, but the Ryans had fought disclosure because they said it could harm their son. The Ryans decided not to appeal Schnider's ruling.

Why do you think his race has anything to do with his work ethic?

Degree of difficulty. Why boxers have to work harder than fishermen. Speaking of which, note that whites dominate the ten easiest sports:

Golf
Cheerleading
Roller Skating
Equestrian
Archery
Curling
Bowling
Shooting
Billiards
Fishing

whereas minorities dominate thhree of the five toughest sports:

Boxing
Ice Hockey
Football
Basketball
Wrestling

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sportSkills; 6/1/09, 2:10 PM
Sigerson said...: I thought his visit to NYC was awesome! Inspiring to have a leader out on the town just like regular folks. Good to support Broadway in this time of so many fine shows closing.; 6/1/09, 4:37 PM
kentuckyliz said...: Given that this date cost around $100k, I sure hope Michelle put out.; 6/1/09, 11:00 PM
OhioAnne said...: Mutaman,

So you couldn't actually produce a copy of the CIA memo that said what you claimed it did - that bad guys were going to blow a hole in Manhatten. What a surprise.

Any other shit that you care to make up?

SigersonI thought his visit to NYC was awesome! Inspiring to have a leader out on the town just like regular folks. Good to support Broadway in this time of so many fine shows closing.I had a discussion with a few "regular folks" the other day. They were GM workers who thought that they would retire there, but are now out of work in their late 50's. Their primary concern is making sure there is a roof over their head, finishing up college tutition for their youngest, and covering the period between when their GM benefits run out and Medicare kicks in on their health care. Given their stress level, a night on Broadway - something none have probably ever had a chance to do despite having been "regular" folks all their lives - would probably be a nice stress reliever at this point.

Since President Obama didn't pay for his night out, why should they? Can we assume that you support the costs of flying them there and seeing a show as you supported President Obama doing the same?

I have to say that you are easily inspired.; 6/2/09, 5:08 AM