President Obama took his wife to a Broadway show in NYC. As absurd as it sounds, this story is on the verge of getting out of hand. People still read Drudge (who is calling it the THE $24,000+ DATE...), and most of the major outlets are also pushing this non-story as something other than just that.
This sort of "news" story needs to be faced head on, immediately. It is important not to let such nonsense spread before speaking sense in response to the clowns who are pushing it. The story will be shot down with ultimate success at some point. But, every day it is allowed to fester, more and more folks who are bombarded with it will have their impression of Obama--in practice--irrevocably tarnished. Allowing this sort of tarnish to build up over multiple nonsense stories will eventually hurt his popularity and thus his ability to progress.
These are the questions that the pushers need to answer (add your own if you think of important ones I haven't):
Is the President ever allowed to take his wife on a date?
The cost of Secret Service was no doubt substantial. Is it legal for the President to head to NYC without USSS protection?
Obama flew to NYC. Could he have taken the train or driven from DC?
What would be the cost if the USSS were to secure the railways or highways between the two cities for his travel?
Would the USSS be required to shut down I95 or rail tracks in stages for his travel? If so, what would be the cost in lost productivity to the American people/economy?
President Obama took a small Air Force jet to NYC instead of the customary 747 model most of us know as Air Force One. These 747s are equipped with security measures that allow presidents to be protected from attack while in flight. Was the USSS forced to compromise the President's safety to the most dangerous level allowed under the law due to political pressure from Obama opponents in the media?
Would it have cost the President more to fly to Crawford, TX?