President Joe Biden headed back to the beach on Wednesday. No, not the beach near his house in Delaware, a much more tropical locale on St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands more than 1,500 miles away from the Oval Office.
The president, along with First Lady Jill Biden and some other members of the extended Biden family, took off for a more tropical locale the day after he briefly returned to the White House from Camp David where he spent a long Christmas holiday weekend hidden away at the presidential retreat in rural Maryland.
Dreary weather in Washington, DC area = President Biden returns from Camp David via motorcade, not Marine One pic.twitter.com/mjYdoIAALs
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) December 26, 2023
As the New York Post reminded, this end-of-year getaway for Biden is his "second holiday trip in two years to St. Croix" after fleeing the continental U.S. for warmer days as "a winter blast killed dozens of people" back home.
Last year, Biden and his family "stayed free of charge at the multimillion-dollar beachfront villa of wealthy donors Bill Connie Neville" who "gave more than $10,000 to Biden's 2020 campaign and were among the select group admitted to the president's first White House state dinner," the Post reminded. This year, Biden's back at the same retreat for a nearly week-long escape:
President Biden arrived Wednesday in the US Virgin Islands for another free vacation at the home of wealthy supporters — after prior gifted stays drew criticism from ethicists, including for his failure to disclose the munificence on annual forms.
The 81-year-old president is expected to stay six nights at the three-bedroom beachfront home of Bill and Connie Neville, whose secluded St. Croix retreat typically operates as a VRBO rental.
First lady Jill Biden, granddaughter Natalie and possibly other members of his family will join the president at the lush retreat — which offers an in-ground pool and picturesque views of the Caribbean Sea and an offshore island.
Despite the crises raging across the country, Biden apparently doesn't see any reason to remain in D.C. Never mind the House's impeachment inquiry launched against him, his son Hunter's legal woes and defiance of congressional subpoenas, inflation's punishing effect on American families, the border crisis that's worse than it's ever been with another caravan headed to the U.S., exceedingly weak performances on the world stage that are failing to deter our foes, or the ongoing collapse of his poll numbers ahead of 2024.
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Nope, none of those items are serious enough for Biden to at least pretend he's taking them seriously. Instead, he's going on an island vacation — something a lot of Americans would probably like to do but can't thanks to "Bidenomics."
Lest you think that perhaps Biden left his failed czar of a VP behind in D.C. to keep an eye on things, Kamala Harris, too has fled Washington to enjoy some time out in California to ring in the new year.
Record numbers of illegal immigrants are pouring across our open southern border.
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) December 26, 2023
Biden and “border czar” Kamala are nowhere to be found. pic.twitter.com/wsmPfiOnqa