President Obama Celebrates Birthday With Golf Game, No Public Appearances
President Obama celebrated his birthday this weekend with a golf game at Andrews Air Force Base and no public meetings Monday. Still, even the president has to do some work on his birthday.
USA Today reports that Obama has several meetings with aides throughout the day, and the economy will likely be a major talking point in his meeting with Treasury Secretary Jack Lew in the afternoon.
The president kicked off his birthday weekend by teeing off against childhood friends Mike Ramos, Bobby Titcomb, and Greg Orme. The foursome, who grew up together in Hawaii, were joined at Andrews Air Force Base by eight other golfers.
Later in the day, Obama boarded Marine One and took a short helicopter ride to Camp David, according to the Associated Press. The president returned to the White House Sunday afternoon to prepare for Monday’s meetings.
Ahead of his golfing trip, the New York Daily News notes that Obama met with reporters Friday and was disappointed to find out the press corps didn’t seem to care about his upcoming 53rd birthday.
Smiling, Obama told them, “I thought that you guys were going to ask me how I was going to spend my birthday. What happened to the birthday thing?”
While the press corps may not have wished him a Happy Birthday, several leaders and organizations did so on Twitter Monday, including Vice President Joe Biden, who tweeted:
Happy birthday, President Obama! pic.twitter.com/XjCxW8agfu
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) August 4, 2014
Other well-wishers included Organizing for Action, a nonprofit social welfare organization that supports the U.S. president. OFA is allowing users to pick a birthday card to send to Obama and sign it before sending it to the White House — no guarantees the president will be able to read them all.
In an opinion article Monday, The Wire reported that, while Obama’s birthday will likely be filled with several presents, there are a few things on his list the president isn’t likely to get by August 4. Among the items are immigration reform, world peace, “just a little bit of credit,” impeachment, and a Republican alternative for Obamacare.
Despite the celebratory day, the president will likely have these things on his mind as he continues to debate with Congress regarding Obamacare, immigration reform, and the lawsuit Republican House members authorized against him last week. Still, this year, the president has some things to celebrate, including a respectable unemployment rate of 6.2 percent, and the fact that jobless claims are near an eight-year low.
The White House didn’t reveal what plans Obama has for his birthday evening, though we can bet he’ll spend time with Michelle, Malia, and Sasha.
[Image: USA Today]
