Obamas Leave for Hawaii

Hawaii surely rejuvenated Dem for fall campaign ... but 3 tips just in case

(NEWSER) - What did Barack Obama do on vacation in Hawaii, beside body-surf and eat shaved ice? He learned three important lessons, John Dickerson writes in Slate, about how to handle the coming phase of the campaign:

1. “Keep it big.” The Democrat has decided to push the “turning-point election” idea. Voters aren’t pleased with the way things are going, so he’ll stress “change vs. more of the same” even harder.

From Kremlin to Paris and slave port, first kids get quite an education

(NEWSER) - Sasha and Malia Obama might not be in school, but their summer vacation has been anything but lazy—the girls have seen the Eiffel Tower, the Kremlin, and Monticello as part of what the first lady calls “Camp Obama." And though there’s been plenty of fun, such as a recent Beyoncé concert, most activities have been educational and even somber, like a recent visit to a slave port in Ghana, the New York Times reports. More»

Islands are favorite getaway for president-elect

(NEWSER) - The Obama family will head to Hawaii for Christmas and New Year’s this year—and possibly every presidential year afterward, the Atlantic reports. That “would please the press corps, the Secret Service, WHCA and the locals to no end,” blogs Marc Ambinder, "though it must be said: Crawford was probably easier to secure." The president-elect last visited the islands in October to see his sick grandmother, and also took a trip there before the Democratic convention. More»

Critics keep seeing dollar signs in pricey Hawaii vacation

(NEWSER) - Irritated penny-pinchers are still tallying up the costs of the First Family's Hawaiian vacation. Because Michelle and the girls went on ahead while the president wrestled with the payroll tax cut extension, some estimates put the price tag for the get-away at $4 million. Now critics are eyeing Michelle's clothing, claiming the ostensibly "causal" Sophie Theallet sundress she wore to Christmas services likely cost $2,000—and a Commes des Garcons skirt set her back at least a grand, reports the Daily Mail . More»

Price of flying Air Force One has gone up since last estimate

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama has officially arrived in Hawaii for his family’s annual Christmas getaway to the state, and what a pricey trip it is: The Hawaiian Reporter estimated the cost of the vacation at more than $4 million. The exact cost of the trip is unknown, but based on the military’s most recent estimate that Air Force One costs $181,757 per hour to operate, the paper estimates the cost of the flight alone at $3,271,622, plus another $100,000 or so for Michelle Obama’s early flight down. More»