Dear ‘Puter,

The public and media obsession with presidential vacations (and in addition to celebrity break-ups is one of the few mutual passions these divergent groups share) is not based on a concern that the President is unavailable.

Rather, the perception is that the President is enjoying the good life when so many other Americans are not. Normally, presidents (and other world leaders) get hammered for taking vacations during national crises. Ideally, the public and media want the President to abandon his vacation and race back to the White House at the first sign of calamity. It shows a willingness to be in charge.

However, complicating a falling public image even further is the frequency and lavishness of President Obama’s vacations. Yes, President Bush vacationed an average of 100 days a year; so far, the Czar believes, President Obama doesn’t even come close to that. But whereas Bush took visible working vacations (as did Clinton, Bush elder, and Reagan) with world and national leaders, signing paperwork, taking meetings, etc., the fascination with Obama is that he seems to work a four day week.

True or not, he is a disaster at planning. Exclusive resorts and expensive flights to Broadway plays when the average American is cancelling his sole vacation this year due to financial constraints. The President commands us to to vacation on the Gulf Coast, and immediately takes a vacation in Maine. He bitches about wealthy fat cats and the Wall Street CEOs, but is seen cavorting with fat cats and CEOs on golf courses a day later.

This originated with an idea that we have an absentee president, who worries more about his vacation plans than he does the rest of the country. But now, it has evolved into this notion that the President is blatantly dismissive of what he says and what he expects of us versus what he actually does himself. It reeks of elitism and arrogance, and it is only helping to weigh down his sagging approval ratings.

And this, the Czar thinks, is worth following and commenting on. Does he deserve vacation time? Sure. Is he out of communication? Nope. We all know this; rather, it will continue to come down to how he vacations and what he communicates that will cause the concern.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.