With his young daughter Sasha in tow, President Obama did what many journalists and pundits wondered openly if he had the guts to do — swim in the Gulf of Mexico.
The president and his family were in Panama City, FL this past weekend for a brief vacation and visit to the oil ravaged Gulf region. Mr. Obama wanted the visit to show his support for the clean up efforts, as well as to deliver a strong message in support of tourism. And what better way to show support than to take a personal swim with your child in the formerly oil filled Gulf waters.
No reporters or press cameras were present for the swim, but the image of the President of the United States fearlessly in the water was a powerful message the White House wanted to convey with the first family’s trip: the Gulf Coast is open for business.
Locals were ecstatic at the presidential swim. “Absolutely, I wanted him to take his shirt off and get in the water and show it’s clean and safe,” said Stephen Leatherman, a professor at Florida International University in Miami who publishes an annual list of America’s best beaches. Leatherman rates the Panama City beach as one of the top 10 in the country, and said Mr. Obama used a unique opportunity to showcase the fact that the Gulf Coast is still open for business despite the worst oil spill in American history.
“There is no better symbol than the President of the United States showing us the way,” Leatherman said.
