barack obama - News - The Coastal Star2024-03-29T00:38:02Zhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/barack+obamaAlong the Coast: A1A again a star on beaten path for Florida campaignhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/along-the-coast-a1a-again-a-star-on-beaten-path-for-florida-campa2012-10-31T18:00:00.000Z2012-10-31T18:00:00.000ZDeborah Hartz-Seeleyhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/DeborahHartzSeeley<div><p><span><b> </b></span></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><span><b>See photos from the campaign trail <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/along-the-coast-the-coastal-campaign-trail-past-and-present">past and present</a><br /></b></span></p>
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<p><span><b>By Tim Pallesen</b></span></p>
<p>The presidential candidates who created a stir in coastal south county this year are only the most recent to discover the political magic along State Road A1A.</p>
<p>Barack Obama stayed at the Ritz-Carlton in Manalapan during a campaign stop in July.</p>
<p>Then opponent Mitt Romney checked into the oceanfront Delray Beach Marriott for the Oct. 22 presidential debate.</p>
<p>Romney actually reached the beach for a flag football game. He and his family found burgers along A1A.</p>
<p>But paradise has attracted others before them.</p>
<p>Gerald Ford endeared himself to coastal residents with five campaign stops between Manalapan and Highland Beach before the 1976 election.</p>
<p>George H.W. Bush rested in Gulf Stream after winning the 1988 presidential election. Delray Beach named George Bush Boulevard in his honor.</p>
<p>The political hoopla along the ocean last month was mostly Romney’s doing.</p>
<p>His choice to stay at a Marriott hotel was predictable. Romney made the hotel chain the semi-official innkeeper of his presidential campaign because of a longtime family friendship that started between his father, George Romney, and hotel founder J. Willard Marriott.</p>
<p>Romney checked into the oceanfront Marriott on the Saturday morning before the Monday night debate. That gave him the weekend to explore the oceanfront on foot and travel up and down A1A in his motorcade.</p>
<p>A1A was a more practical north-south route than west on busy Atlantic Avenue to I-95. The police motorcycles and black SUVs headed north Saturday afternoon to carry Romney to a fund-raiser in Palm Beach.</p>
<p>Jenna Walsh, a bride returning to the Marriott with her wedding party, will never forget when A1A was closed at Woolbright Road so the motorcade could pass.</p>
<p>But Walsh was no regular bride standing alongside the road in her wedding dress. Her family owns the local Marriott. So Romney later posed for a photo with her, her husband and parents back at the hotel.</p>
<p>Romney then walked out of the hotel to find the nearest oceanfront cuisine. The Republican presidential candidate chose the upscale fast-food chain BurgerFi across the street.</p>
<p>“He was very obliging and hospitable,” BurgerFi manager Scott Zuckerman said. “Employees had their pictures taken with him.”</p>
<p>Romney ordered a veggie burger without bread for himself and cheeseburgers, milkshakes and fries for his wife, Ann, son Craig and his family. His bill: $52.72.</p>
<p>Romney hit the beach after church Sunday morning wearing black shorts, a black Adidas T-shirt and gray sneakers for a flag football game between his staff and reporters covering his campaign.</p>
<p>“Figure out which of their players are best and take them out early. Don’t worry about injuries,” Romney joked with his staff before he tossed a coin that got lost in the sand. The game highlight came when Ann Romney threw a touchdown pass with Secret Service agents as her offensive line. </p>
<p>The frolic was cut short because a national poll released that day showed Romney and Obama in a dead heat going into the critical debate Monday night at Lynn University.</p>
<p>Obama passed on the oceanfront experience, checking into an inland Embassy Suites in Boca Raton. Romney left the beach to study his foreign policy.</p>
<p>But the fascination that presidents have shown for coastal south county has a long history that’s certain to continue.</p>
<p>President Warren Harding was the first to explore the area when he sailed down the Intracoastal Waterway aboard the presidential yacht <i>Mayflower</i> in 1923. Subsequent presidents did away with the presidential yacht, which was replaced by motorcades.</p>
<p>Palm Beach claimed John F. Kennedy during his presidency, and Richard Nixon enjoyed Key Biscayne.</p>
<p>But Briny Breezes will never forget when Gerald Ford stopped his motorcade to visit residents in 1976.</p>
<p>“The Briny people turned out in force because there are a lot of Michigan people in Briny,” recalled Rita Taylor, the Ocean Ridge clerk at the time. Giant banners welcomed Ford. People stood five deep along A1A.</p>
<p>“It rained something horrible that day,” Taylor said. “But the president rode up in his car, stood outside and presented his speech. It was quite an exciting time for all of us.”</p>
<p>Ford also thrilled coastal residents when he spoke at the Lantana bridge, the Ocean Ridge Town Hall, the Delray Beach municipal beach and the Seagate of Highland condo in Highland Beach while traveling down A1A.</p>
<p>Ocean Ridge police covered Briny Breezes, and Ford telephoned to thank Taylor afterward to help make his motorcade a success. “That really made it memorable for me,” she said. </p>
<p>Taylor also remembers when George Bush senior fished and body-surfed at the Gulf Stream home of William Farish after winning the 1988 presidential election.</p>
<p>“I remember Barbara Bush swimming in the ocean with the Secret Service in a small boat beside her,” Taylor said.</p>
<p>Bush golfed across A1A at the Gulf Stream Golf Club. A U.S. Customs speedboat took him to Jupiter Island to attend church with his mother during his four-day stay.</p>
<p>“I think President Bush clearly enjoyed himself,” said Gulf Stream Police Chief Garrett Ward, who was a patrol officer at the time. “The townspeople were very proud that he was staying in our town.” </p>
<p>A year later, the Gulf Stream Republican Club caused a stir when it paid $25,000 to rename Northeast Eighth Street as George Bush Boulevard. Merchants objected, but the name stuck.</p>
<p>State Road A1A has grown into even more of a political highway during the weeks before the Nov. 6 election.</p>
<p>Not only presidential candidates travel the road now.</p>
<p>State House candidate Tom Gustafson walked along A1A for his campaign last month. State Senate candidate Ellyn Bogdanoff rode a bicycle to greet coastal voters.</p>
<p>Bicycle and pedestrian visits by local candidates caused no problems for police along A1A. But the Romney motorcade that shut down Gulf Stream before and after the presidential debate was another story, according to Gulf Stream’s police chief.</p>
<p>“Thirty or so motorcycle escorts made for a major traffic disruption,” Ward said. “I don’t recall anything like that when President Bush was here. That visit wasn’t as excessive as what goes on today.” </p></div>Along the Coast: The coastal campaign trail, past and presenthttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/along-the-coast-the-coastal-campaign-trail-past-and-present2012-10-31T17:00:00.000Z2012-10-31T17:00:00.000ZDeborah Hartz-Seeleyhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/DeborahHartzSeeley<div><p></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406079,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406079,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="360" alt="7960406079?profile=original" /></a><em>Mitt Romney leads the cheer in a football huddle with debate prep coach Sen. Rob Portman and his senior staff members. The game was held down the beach from the Delray Beach Mariott. Members of Romney’s traveling press corps formed the opposing team. <b>AP Photo</b></em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em><b><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406093,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406093,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960406093?profile=original" /></a></b>Sen. John McCain tweets before another interview in the 'Spin Room' at Lynn University. <strong>Thom Smith/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><b> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406468,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406468,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="360" alt="7960406468?profile=original" /></a></b><em>The morning after the debate at Lynn University, President Barack Obama spoke to a capacity crowd at the Delray Beach Tennis Center. <b>Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star</b></em></p>
<p><span><b> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406688,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406688,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="360" alt="7960406688?profile=original" /></a></b></span></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>President-elect George H.W. Bush fishes in the surf off Gulf Stream after his ’88 win. <b>Photo by Jim Virga</b></em></p>
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<p style="text-align:center;"><b><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406491,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406491,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="360" alt="7960406491?profile=original" /></a></b><em>Michiganders in Briny Breezes prepare to welcome Gerald Ford in 1976. <b>Courtesy of the Briny Breezes Historical Preservation Committee</b></em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em><b><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406295,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960406295,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960406295?profile=original" /></a></b>Tom Gustafson walks to find some political magic along A1A. <strong>Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960407272,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960407272,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960407272?profile=original" /></a></strong>Ellyn Bogdanoff bicycles to find some political magic along A1A. <strong>Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
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<p><b> </b></p></div>Keeping an eye out for the president: A political buzz and a (mostly) profitable swarmhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/keeping-an-eye-out-for-the-president-a-political-buzz-and-a-mostl2012-08-02T14:30:00.000Z2012-08-02T14:30:00.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960397067,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960397067,original{{/staticFileLink}}" height="282" width="360" alt="7960397067?profile=original" /></a></strong><strong>By Tim O’Meilia</strong><br /> <br /> Four things learned from last month’s visit of President Obama and Vice President Biden:<br /> 1. Waiting onlookers and reporters like pizza, ice cream and cinnamon-nut French toast.<br /> 2. Roped-off parking lots mean no parking meter revenue and no beachfront breakfast crowd.<br /> 3. No school buses parked nose-to-tail were harmed during the presidential and vice-presidential visits.<br /> 4. You can get from Manalapan to the Palm Beach International Airport in 17 minutes even if the bridge is out — if you’ve got a Secret Service escort.<br /> President Barack Obama’s motorcade didn’t buzz up to the Ritz-Carlton’s back door until after 9:30 p.m. July 19, giving well-wishers and television news crews hours of milling-around time in the Plaza del Mar shopping <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960397084,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960397084,original{{/staticFileLink}}" height="279" width="360" alt="7960397084?profile=original" /></a>center at the corner of Ocean Avenue and State Road A1A. <br /> “It was the best night we’ve had since we opened,” beamed Dean Ismajli, who opened his second Lantana II Pizza two months ago in the Plaza courtyard. The restaurant wrote 227 order tickets that night. <br /> Ismajli suspected the Secret Service had been reconnoitering the plaza for several weeks. <br /> “Well-dressed, clean-cut, big,” he said, flexing his shoulders and arms. “They won’t tell you (who they were) but you could pretty much tell.”<br /> Around the corner, the Ice Cream Club didn’t have a Rocky Road to the White House cone on the menu, but they did have a “Welcome, President Obama” sign. <br /> Not that the president could see the sign from behind the row of protective school buses lining the plaza parking lot along A1A. Some of the crowd wondered if</p>
<p><em>ABOVE: Security atop the Ritz-Carlton in Manalapan keeps a lookout as crowds wait for President Obama to pass.</em></p>
<p><em><strong>Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star |</strong></em> <strong>See</strong> <em><strong><a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/photo/photo/slideshow?albumId=2331112:Album:76035">more photos</a><br /></strong></em></p>
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<p>schoolchildren had been bused in to greet the president. <br /> “We didn’t get the president over here, but we got a lot of other people. It was a fun and exciting event,” said store co-owner Rich Draper.<br /> Wendy Yarbrough of John G’s in the plaza was expecting a presidential customer for breakfast. “The Secret Service were all over the place,” she said. <br /> The staff and locals were ready for their close-up with the POTUS. But world events intervened overnight.<br /> “It’s unfortunate about the horrible tragedy in Colorado,” Yarbrough said, “and we are praying for the victims, but yes, we were disappointed that he couldn’t make it.”<br /> Locals lined up outside the restaurant at 7 a.m. when Yarbrough opened the doors. “But they wouldn’t come inside — they all just hung out on the sidewalk to see him.”<br /> While Vice President Joe Biden spent barely 45 minutes at the hotel, the president’s overnight entourage occupied two floors of the resort and required metal detectors at every elevator. <br /> The visits didn’t ring the cash register for everyone.<br /> With the Lantana beach parking lot next to the Ritz roped off for security concerns, the beachfront Dune Deck did little Friday morning business until the president left at about 9:15 a.m.<br /> “The police came in and bought, so it wasn’t so bad,” said co-owner Costa Panais.<br /> With no parking lot and a downpour Monday morning when Biden arrived, Panais decided not to open. “We had to do what we had to do. You’ve got to protect the president,” he said. “It was out of my hands.”<br /> The town of Lantana is taking a different tack. With their metered parking blocked off for a day and a half, town officials calculated a loss of $4,275 in parking meter income. The Town Council decided to ask the feds for a reimbursement.<br /> The town can’t afford to lose the money, said Mayor Dave Stewart, since the council faces a $140,000 deficit unless taxes are raised. “That’s money we would have brought in, anticipated revenue,” he said, suggesting the town needs a new $5,000 ATV for beach patrol.<br /> “We can ask for it. I really don’t expect to get it,” the mayor said. “Maybe we’ll get a nice letter back saying sorry for the inconvenience.”<br /> The two visits forced Manalapan and South Palm Beach to call in extra officers, but the overtime was minimal, both police chiefs said. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office bore the brunt of providing security.<br /> One South Palm Beach onlooker counted 93 motorcycles, trucks and limousines in the president’s motorcade and 63 in Biden’s. The Sheriff’s Office did not respond by press time to a request for the cost. <br /> “It was a very smooth operation,” said Manalapan Police Chief Carmen Mattox. “All the businesses in the plaza cooperated and the Ritz-Carlton cooperated.”<br /> South Palm Beach Police Chief Roger Crane said several hundred people lined A1A for a glimpse of the president’s motorcade and all followed instructions to stay on the sidewalk. “No one jumped out in the road to take a picture,” he said.<br /> The Ice Cream Club’s Draper is eager for more campaign visits before the November election. “Whatever brings in the television coverage and gets the plaza and the Ritz talked about,” he said, ever the businessman. <br /> <em>Jan Norris contributed to this story.</em></p></div>