Obama Ditches Press Pool To Take Daughters To Aquatic Park

UPDATES:

More from the Obama press pool:

Dec. 26, 2008 Waimanalo, Hawaii Pool Report No. 5

President-elect Barack Obama arrived at Sea Life Park, a marine amusement
park in Waimanalo, about 12:10 p.m. He is apparently inside the park with
daughters Malia and Sasha. He left their Kailua vacation home without the
protective press pool.

Your pool arrived at the park about 1:10 p.m. and are holding outside the
park to await instructions on whether we will have access to the Obamas.

Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt issued the following statement to your pool:
"With no further scheduled events for the day, a lid was called until
further notice. The President-elect decided to take the girls to a water
park and we assembled the pool as quickly as possible."

The park is nestled along the shoreline in the sparsely populated and
scenic Waimanalo area, with soaring volcanic mountains nearby.

For the first time on his Hawaii vacation, it appears Obama gave the press pool that follows him the slip. From the Obama press pool report:

Dec. 26, 2008 Pool report No. 4 Kailua, Hawaii

President-elect Barack Obama left his vacation home with daughters Malia
and Sasha about 11:45 a.m. His motorcade left without the pool, the first
time he has done so on this Hawaiian vacation. Your pool, which had a lid,
was not informed in time and is now en route to the Kailua home to be swept
by Secret Service. Pool will attempt to meet up with the Obamas shortly.

The Obamas are apparently at Sea Life Park, a marine amusement park near
Waimanalo and Bellows Air Force Station.

Updates to come once the pool is taken to the park.

Comments

[laurelm6]

03:34 PM on 12/30/2008

wow. who wouldn't rather go to the water park with the children rather than deal with all the kung-fu that's happening.

[mynameismimi]

06:42 PM on 12/29/2008

Good for him. His obligation to the American people is to provide a good Presidency, and it is decidedly not to pose with his family at the water park before he even takes the oath.

[heartsick]

06:19 PM on 12/29/2008

It is disgraceful that this report impugns Obama for getting rid of the nosey, snooping reporters who are just looking for something to criticize. It would please me greatly, if he could leave them behind forever.

[concerned5150]

05:04 PM on 12/29/2008

many good points and here is one more

what about the seal life park animals
they get stressed out as well

give em all a break

[royevatom]

03:41 PM on 12/29/2008

Memo to Press Pool and Journalists involved in pursuing President elect. We the public do not have much respect for you or what you want. Your credibility is at an all time low. You don't have the right to complete and unrestricted access to the President, any access you do have is a privilege. As far as I am concerned you can all wait in the alley with the paparazzi.

[Bayboysurfer1]

03:23 PM on 12/29/2008

Yes, I agree, leave him and his family alone. People should let him do his job without constant annoyances. He has a little time prior to inauguration and should have some fun with his family without this media bombardment.
By Lemont Baybrook of Lake Forest, CA.

[fishgirl26]

02:53 PM on 12/29/2008

ENOUGH!! Let this man take his children to the water park!!! What business is it to us to see the first family running around in swimsuits!

[Rightone11]

01:12 PM on 12/29/2008

Oh, the PRESSURE!! And he isn't even the POTUS yet. He will fold, like a lawn chair. He can not take the pressure. And he will be lost without his Blackberry~

[ibsteve2u]

10:52 AM on 12/29/2008

Good for Obama...meanwhile, there is a Politico article whining about Obama "already showing the strain of the constant exposure to the Press"....to paraphrase an otherwise stultifying article.

Too much of "The Press" somehow got the idea that they are entitled to intrude into people's private lives, thus embarking onto the same meaningless journey as the paparazzi chose long ago.

If "The Press" is not careful, they will soon enjoy the same lack of stature - and relevance - as the paparazzi.

[wagadog]

10:03 AM on 12/29/2008

Obama's presidency is going to be bigger than the Beatles.

This is like the scene out of "Hard Days Night" where Ringo goes walkabout.

[Icantbelieveher]

03:51 AM on 12/29/2008

He is the President-Elect, not Brad Pitt and this is not Entertainment Tonight! Let him be when he is spending time with his family and stop making everything a spectacle! Go follow Bushy around -- he's had an awful lot to say lately!

[fishgirl26]

02:54 PM on 12/29/2008

No kidding....follow bush around...he is still el presidente and maybe he can explain to us ONE MORE TIME why he invaded Iraq.

[NASCARLiberal]

11:59 PM on 12/28/2008

I think it is pretty sad! The press now has access to some great Obama-related stories and they are completely ignoring them. The TV media should go over to Punahou School, the future President's high school, and let the world know what an awesome place that school is. Surely someone there could arrange a tour. I hear Obama's initials are in the pavement somewhere over there.

It is one of the most technologically advanced K-12 schools in the world. And yet, it has a wonderful greystone look that reminds me of fine older universities on the mainland. Too bad they aren't there for Punahou Carnival ... one of my favorite events in Honolulu. I hear the new President loves chili, hopefully he'll be getting some of Zippy's finest chili-rice ... my personal favorite breakfast! At Punahou Carnival he could get some of the finest Portugee Bean Soup on the island! Yummy! Press corps, go out and find some stories that would really interest the world!

[Rightone11]

01:13 PM on 12/29/2008

So, PE Obama tore up school property? Tsk, tsk~

[lmvd3]

10:08 PM on 12/28/2008

The mark of an awesome father!

[CommonSenseMom]

10:03 PM on 12/28/2008

Good for you Obama!!

I think it's pathetic that a member of the press "has" to be with Obama every freakin' second. I couldn't care less about Obama's "tuna melt on 12-grain" bread.

Give a man some space and some dignity!!!

[Applecheeks]

05:36 PM on 12/28/2008

I hope the girls got to swim with the dolphins. And I'm sure they fed the seaturtles, and watched the dolphin and sea lion shows. I hope they enjoyed themselves. And no pictures! Yey! Though I am not hypocrite enough to say I wouldn't have liked to have seen them. I'm sure some tourist somewhere got a good shot.