Obama may regret vacation

By Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier

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Imagery, though frequently inconsequential in real terms, matters deeply in politics. As evidence, think back to a presidential debate in 1992.

In that contest, Bill Clinton was challenging the incumbent, President George H.W. Bush. (For the record, so was Ross Perot.)

A member of the audience asked how the recession was affecting the candidates. Clinton stepped forward and looked the person in the eye. After he spoke, Clinton addressed the person.

“Tell me how it's affected you again,” he said.

In contrast, Bush glanced at his wristwatch, a gesture that took on symbolic meaning. Apparently, critics concluded, the president would rather be somewhere else.

In a millisecond, Clinton seemed concerned and relaxed. Bush came off as bored and disinterested.

Voters may draw a similar comparison to photos and stories of President Barack Obama's vacation. Critics already have.

The Washington Post offered this observation: “With 14 million Americans out of work, a volatile stock market and a historic downgrade of the country's credit rating, President Obama is set to begin a 10-day retreat ... at a 28-acre Martha's Vineyard compound called Blue Heron Farm, which costs an estimated $50,000 per week to rent.”

The newspaper contrasts those facts with the president's vow to work diligently “until every American looking for a job can find one.”

Nile Gardiner of The Telegraph in London took a hard line.

“It is a particularly foolish act just 14 months away from a presidential election where he will likely end up the underdog rather than the favorite,” he wrote.

The Boston Globe was more forgiving.

“To this point in his presidency, (Obama) has taken 61 days off; at the same point in his presidency, George W. Bush had already spent 180 days at his Texas ranch.”

Advocates for Bush then and Obama now note an American president is never far from the Oval Office even if well removed from the Resolute desk. Air Force One and any establishment hosting the leader of the free world will have accoutrements regular citizens can only dream of.

But imagery matters in politics, so expect to hear the phrase “tone deaf” a lot in coming days.

Whether this vacation turns into a wristwatch Obama will have to wear remains to be seen.

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