One summer, when I was working in a souvenir shop (the Vineyard has long attracted — and welcomed — tourists), I sold a T-shirt to Rose Kennedy, who paid with a personal check. Then my grandfather died, and my grandmother sold the house. By the time I returned to the island as an adult, things had markedly changed.
A Clintonized version of this island off the coast of Massachusetts had been broadcast to the world, and doubling back on itself, Martha's Vineyard became "Martha's Vineyard." (See pictures of Presidents at the beach.)
Martha's Vineyard was never my home, but it's the place that holds my happiest memories. Given the dire economic circumstances and his leadership failures, President Obama should downgrade his vacation plans to match the depreciated U.S. credit rating.”
Obama has come under increased scrutiny this week for his 10-day vacation plan, especially in the wake of the nation’s first credit rating downgrade and unemployment hovering around 9.1 percent. Most recently, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney dinged the president for his vacation choice.
“Now, Martha’s Vineyard is in my home state of Massachusetts so I don’t want to say anything negative about people vacationing there,” Romney said. “But if you’re the president of the United States, and the nation is in crisis, and we’re in a jobs crisis right now, then you shouldn’t be out vacationing. “Critics on the right would complain if he went to Rehoboth [Del.] for the weekend,” said Daniella Gibbs Leger, a Center for American Progress vice president and former Obama administration official.
“Compared to the last president, Obama has not taken nearly as much vacation time. And as everyone knows, the White House travels with the president and he will be working plenty during this trip. “The president deserves to spend some time with his family, especially after the summer we’ve all endured.”
President Obama and the first family retreat today from the spotlight and political rough-and-tumble of Washington for a 10-day vacation on the Massachusetts island of Martha's Vineyard.
The Obamas are headed back to the Blue Heron Farm, a spacious $20 million estate in the Chilmark section of the island, for their third consecutive year. While the unemployment rate is much lower during the summer months, which is peak tourist season, regional economists say island unemployment has been much higher than average, reflecting Americans' cutbacks in travel during the recession and the housing market crash.
"The farther you get away from Boston, the economic indicators fall off dramatically," said Paul Bachman, a Suffolk University economist, who studies the economy on Martha's Vineyard. It just works for our economy."
Still, some of the president's Republican critics say his head belongs in Washington, working on solutions to help create more jobs.
"If I were president today, I wouldn't be looking to go spend 10 days on Martha's Vineyard," GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney told a Chicago radio station Wednesday.
Obama heads on vacation as polls show his approval ratings on the economy have hit new lows. The latest Gallup survey found just 26 percent of Americans approve of the president's handling of the economy, while 71 percent disapprove. The president's overall job approval rating has sunk to 39 percent.