Vacationing Bush Poised to
Set a Record
The Washington Post
By Jim VandeHei and Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, August 3, 2005; A04
WACO, Tex., Aug. 2 -- President Bush is getting the kind of
break most Americans can only dream of -- nearly five weeks away
from the office, loaded with vacation time.
The president departed Tuesday for his longest stretch yet
away from the White House, arriving at his Crawford ranch in the
evening for a stretch of clearing brush, visiting with family and
friends, and tending to some outside-the-Beltway politics. By
historical standards, it is the longest presidential retreat in
at least 36 years.
The August getaway is Bush's 49th trip to his cherished ranch
since taking office and the 319th day that Bush has spent,
entirely or partially, in Crawford -- nearly 20 percent of his
presidency to date, according to Mark Knoller, a CBS Radio
reporter known for keeping better records of the president's
travel than the White House itself. Weekends and holidays at Camp
David or at his parents' compound in Kennebunkport, Maine, bump
up the proportion of Bush's time away from Washington even
further.
Bush's long vacations are more than a curiosity: They play
into diametrically opposite arguments about this leadership
style. To critics and late-night comics, they symbolize a
lackadaisical approach to the world's most important day job, an
impression bolstered by Bush's two-hour midday exercise sessions
and his disinclination to work nights or weekends. The more
vociferous among Bush's foes have noted that he spent a month at
the ranch shortly before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, when
critics assert he should have been more attentive to warning
signs.
To Bush and his advisers, that criticism fundamentally
misunderstands his Texas sojourns. Those who think he does not
remain in command, aides say, do not understand the modern
presidency or Bush's own work habits. At the ranch, White House
officials say, Bush continues to receive daily national security
briefings, sign documents, hold teleconferences with aides and
military commanders, and even meet with foreign leaders. And from
the president's point of view, the long Texas stints are the best
way to clear his mind and reconnect with everyday America.
"I'm looking forward to getting down there and just kind of
settling in," Bush told reporters from Texas newspapers during a
roundtable interview at the White House on Monday. "I'll be doing
a lot of work. On the other hand, I'll also be kind of making
sure my Texas roots run deep."
"Spending time outside of Washington always gives the
president a fresh perspective of what's on the minds of the
American people," White House press secretary Scott McClellan
told reporters Friday. "It's a time, really, for him to shed the
coat and tie and meet with folks out in the heartland and hear
what's on their minds."
Just as Bush has made these August trips a regular feature of
his presidency, so, too, have Democrats made a tradition of
needling him about them. This year, opposition politicians are
tying his departure from Washington to the CIA leak case that has
swept up his top adviser, Karl Rove.
"The White House stonewalling operation is moving to Crawford
for the dog days of summer, but they can't hide from the
legitimate questions dogging the president and his refusal to
keep his promise and fire Karl Rove," said Josh Earnest, a
spokesman for the Democratic National Committee.
Presidents have often sought refuge from the pressures of
Washington and from life in the White House, which Harry S.
Truman called the crown jewel of the American prison system.
Richard M. Nixon favored Key Biscayne, Fla. Bush's father
preferred Maine. Bill Clinton, lacking a home of his own,
borrowed a house on Martha's Vineyard, except for two years when
political adviser Dick Morris nudged him into going to Jackson,
Wyo., before his reelection because it polled better.
Until now, probably no modern president was a more famous
vacationer than Ronald Reagan, who loved spending time at his
ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif. According to an Associated Press
count, Reagan spent all or part of 335 days in Santa Barbara over
his eight-year presidency -- a total that Bush will surpass this
month in Crawford with 3 1/2 years left in his second term.
"The Oval Office is wherever the president of the United
States is," said Kenneth M. Duberstein, who was Reagan's last
White House chief of staff. "With the communications being what
they are, the president can communicate instantly with whomever
he wants anywhere in the world."
Bush will not return to the White House until after Labor Day,
but his staff has peppered his schedule with events to dispel any
impression that he is not on duty. He will visit at least seven
states, mostly with quick day trips, including New Mexico, where
he plans to sign energy legislation into law. He gets off to a
quick start this week, with a speech Wednesday in nearby
Grapevine, Tex., then he plays host to President Alvaro Uribe of
Colombia at the ranch Thursday. His schedule is clear Friday
through Sunday.
At some point, Bush told reporters Monday, Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld will
visit for consultations. "I have a busy couple of weeks down
there," Bush said.
But he will make time for fun, or at least his idea of it.
Bush rarely takes the type of vacation one would consider exotic
-- or, to some, even appealing. His notion of relaxation is
chopping cedar on his ranch or mountain biking through rough
terrain, all in 100-degree-plus temperatures in dusty Texas where
crickets are known to roast on the summer pavement. He seems to
relish the idea of exposing aides and reporters to the hothouse
environment.
"I just checked in with the house -- it's about 100 degrees,"
he told reporters Monday. "But no matter how hot it gets, I enjoy
spending time in Texas."
Baker reported from Washingto
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