Hawaii Tries in Vain to Cash In on Obama Fame

President, daughters, friends release four of them in Hawaii

(NEWSER) - Apparently it’s not just turkeys that are eligible for a presidential pardon—sea turtles are, too. President Obama "pardoned" four of them yesterday during a visit to Hawaii’s Sea Life Park, releasing the 18-month-old turtles into Hanauma Bay. The president was accompanied by his daughters and a group of friends, USA Today reports. More»

While us fools toil away, fighting off the Monday morning blues...

(NEWSER) - If the president isn't working, we don't have to, right? It only seems fair, considering Obama is taking an extra day of vacation. Instead of returning from shaved-ice paradise on Sunday, the president will leave Monday evening and arrive Tuesday afternoon, reports the Wall Street Journal . "After the extended lame duck and five-day delay of his trip here, he's just trying to squeeze in more time with his family before returning to Washington," said his deputy press secretary yesterday. Or perhaps he's just not too eager to return to this reality... More»

(AP) - Barack Obama ventured from his Hawaii vacation hideaway on Christmas Day to thank Marines and sailors at the nearby military base for their service. He spent more than an hour at the dining hall, posing for pictures between the ham, roast beef, and turkey on the buffet and lingering a few moments at each table. The trip came well after the evening network news programs had aired, allowing him to visit without the suggestion of exploiting the military to get on TV. More»

State's fave son arrives for a holiday break before the move to DC

(NEWSER) - Hawaii bid aloha to the Obamas as they arrived yesterday for a holiday break in a beach-side estate about half an hour from Honolulu, the Honolulu Advertiser reports. Residents of the quiet neighborhood lined the block with beach chairs and waved as Obama’s motorcade rolled by yesterday. “We want him to have a good, restful vacation because he has a big job ahead of him in Washington, DC,” a neighbor said. 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»