Free Republic

KAILUA, Hawaii -- Before heading to a Wednesday luau, President Barack Obama did something much more somber, his aides said: he called CIA director Leon Panetta to discuss the deaths of seven agency officers in a suicide attack in Afghanistan. On Thursday morning, before taking his family to a private viewing of the movie "Avatar 3-D," Obama called his counterterrorism and homeland security advisers for updates on an attempted airline attack a week earlier. And on New Year's Eve, after more than five hours of golf, the president "cleared the decks" for work, aides said -- sequestering himself for several...

Good evening. Tonight, as Americans across the country gather with family and friends, I want to wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year. This is always a hopeful time, as we celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of another. And while 2009 was difficult for many Americans, we must also look back on this year with the knowledge that brighter days are ahead of us – that although our challenges are great, each of us has the courage and determination to rise up and meet them. It is that spirit that has kept the American Dream...

KANEOHE BAY, Hawaii (AP) - President Barack Obama went golfing on New Year's Eve. The president hit the links at Mid-Pacific Country Club in the same Honolulu suburb of Kailua where he's renting a beachfront home for the holidays. Obama earlier went to Windward Mall in Kaneohe to see a 3-D version of the movie "Avatar" with his daughters and family friends. They enjoyed a special screening of the movie and had a theater to themselves before regular showings began for the day.