Former President Obama and his family are permanent homeowners on Martha’s Vineyard, after completing the purchase this week of a large home in the coastal perimeter of Edgartown.
As their Vineyard vacation draws to a close, the Obamas finally hit the beach Saturday before heading out to dinner in Edgartown. The president also squeezed in another round of golf.
The president, first lady and daughters Malia and Sasha arrived at a private beach off Pohogonot Road at around 10 a.m. Saturday morning. The rural area, accessed down long dirt roads, offers access to Edgartown Great Pond and the Atlantic Ocean. The Obamas have visited the beach during other Vineyard visits.
President Obama addressed the nation from outside his Chilmark rental home Thursday morning about the ongoing violence in Egypt.
The briefing took place on the sixth day of President Obama’s Vineyard vacation, a week punctuated by security and press briefings and a familiar pattern of golf, dining out and quiet time with family and friends.
In a statement issued Thursday morning from Chilmark, President Obama condemned the continuing violence in Egypt and announced that the United States will cancel joint military exercises with the Egyptian government.
“The Egyptian people deserve better than what we’ve seen over the last several days,” the president said, speaking at a morning briefing for the traveling press pool outside the vacation home he is renting off South Road.
World news intruded on President Obama’s Vineyard vacation Wednesday, with briefings for the press and the president on unfolding violence in Egypt.
“The United States strongly condemns the use of violence against protesters in Egypt,” principal deputy press secretary Josh Earnest said.
Fried food at Nancy’s to go, eaten at friend Valerie Jarrett’s house in Oak Bluffs. Dinner out alone with the first lady at the Beach Plum in Chilmark. A round of basketball in the middle. These were the benchmarks of President Obama’s vacation (day four) as he plied familiar haunts.
West Tisbury businesses, from a gas station to farm stand vendors, fear that the partial closure of South Road and prominent detour signs spurred by President Obama’s visit will hurt sales during one of the busiest weeks of the year.
President Obama arrived for a nine-day visit on Martha’s Vineyard last Saturday. The first family is staying at a private home off South Road in Chilmark. Because of security concerns, South Road is closed between Meeting House Road and Wooton Bassett Road until August 18.
