If I had an appointment at the White House, I'd show up on time. Them’s the breaks. you ever make the drive from Stafford, VA into DC? Whoever from the school agreed to a 9:30 appointment was crazy, or they should have left at 6:30am. That's an UGLY drive at rush hour.
Somebody screwed up alright, and it wasn't someone in the White House. Your comment, “...should have left at 6:30am” is spot-on. People who are punctual are consistently on time, and people who are late are always late; it comes down to how much you're willing to inconvenience yourself for the sake of showing up on time. When I lived in Los Angeles and people would justify tardiness by citing “traffic”, I'd point out that I lived in the same city and I was always on time.
GWB is known to be a maniac about being on time, while Bill CLinton and Obama are often late. Very telling.