Community | August 14, 2010 | 41 comments

Obama, Daughter Take a Dip in the Gulf

source: http://www.newsherald.com/news/tyndall-86151-obamas-afb.html

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President Barack Obama and his daughter Sasha took a dip in the water on Saturday afternoon during their brief family vacation in Panama City Beach.

White House officials said the two went for a swim at Alligator Point, behind their hotel, before eating lunch at Lime's, a waterfront restaurant at the Bay Point Marriott.



Below are earlier versions of this report:

3:30 p.m.: PANAMA CITY BEACH — The first family indulged in a simple lunch by Grand Lagoon at Lime’s Bayside Bar and Grill at the Bay Point Marriott on Saturday afternoon. Early rain eased for the family, allowing them to dine outside on the dock under a partly cloudy sky, despite the heat and humidity.

The first family’s menu included chicken tenders, fish tacos and a burger with an order of guacomole. White House officials said the family shared each of the items.

Lunch was taken at a leisurely pace appropriate for the family vacation; President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle and their daughter Sasha spent a few hours at the hotel before departing for their next destination, which has not been announced.

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2:15 p.m.: PANAMA CITY BEACH — The oil has stopped flowing and the well has been capped, but the work is far from over in restoring the Gulf region to the pristine condition it enjoyed before the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

With a backdrop of U.S. Coast Guard ships at Navy Support Activity Panama City, President Barack Obama on Saturday vowed he and his administration will not slacken their efforts in the Gulf until the environment and economy are fully recovered.

“Our job is not finished, and we are not going anywhere until it is,” he said.

VIDEO: President speaks at Naval Support Activity Panama City »

The comments followed a half-hour roundtable discussion with area political leaders and small business representatives on the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The president called the spill the worst natural disaster America has faced, and detailed the technological difficulty that punctuated attempts to cap the well. He thanked the men and women of the Panama City Beach Coast Guard station for their tireless efforts.

“The Coast Guard was the first on the scene,” he said. “The folks here have toiled day and night, spending weeks and even months away from their family.”

The president and first lady Michelle Obama started their Panama City Beach vacation talking with Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, Panama City Mayor Scott Clemons, Panama City Beach Mayor Gayle Oberst, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, hotel manager Lee Ann Leonard, charter boat Capt. Gary Jarvis and restaurant owner Carolyn Holman.

Obama said he would dedicate most of his time in the region to listening, and at the end of the roundtable discussion he said he had learned firsthand how the oil spill has damaged the Panhandle’s economy.

Jarvis has seen his business fall a full 50 percent, he said, and Leonard is relying on the off months of August and September to make up for dismal business in July, a month typically considered the height of the tourist season.

Oberst and Clemons introduced ideas about diversifying the Panhandle’s economy in an effort to protect the region from future economic turmoil if another natural disaster should rock the coast.

(more @ link)
  1. groups:
    Community,   News and Politics
  2. tags:
    Obama,  Vacation,  Swimming
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