HONOLULU â€" After an end-of-the-year news conference whose first question â€" “Has this been the worst year of your presidency?†â€" offered a trenchant reminder of President Obama’s troubled 2013, the president seemed especially ready for a break from the nation’s capital.
And so it was, less than 24-hours later, that Mr. Obama touched down in Hawaii, his boyhood home, for his annual holiday vacation. Accompanied by his wife, Michelle, his two daughters, and the First Family’s two Portuguese Water Dogs, Sunny and Bo, Mr. Obama walked off Air Force One and into the muggy Hawaiian darkness just before midnight Friday.
Already in vacation-casual â€" clad in khakis and blue button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up (no tie) â€" the president greeted the several dozen well-wishers and servicemen and women who had gathered at Hickam Air Force Base to watch his arrival.
He was also met by Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie; Kirk Caldwell, the mayor of Honolulu; Representative Tulsi Gabbard, Democrat of Hawaii (who Tweeted a photo of Mr. and Mrs. Obama exiting Air Force One); and Admiral Samuel Locklear, the commander of the United States Pacific Command.
The responsibilities of the Oval Office have often followed Mr. Obama to his Pacific retreat. (Think the fiscal crisis of 2012, or the Christmas day bomber of 2009.) But the president’s aides said that barring any unexpected surprises, they were hoping to keep his two-week island vacation low-key and largely news-free.
After all, a bit of rest and relaxation is just what their boss called for at his news conference. “So, you know, the end of the year is always a good time to reflect and see what can you do better next year,†Mr. Obama said Friday afternoon. “That’s how I intend to approach it. I am sure that I will have even better ideas after a couple days of sleep and sun.â€
