Obama begins Hawaiian vacation

President Obama and the first family have begun their seventh presidential Christmas vacation in Hawaii.

Air Force One landed late Friday evening at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam with the president, first lady Michelle Obama, their daughters Sasha and Malia. First dogs Bo and Sunny were also in tow.

The president and his family will be staying in Kailua, a Honolulu neighborhood hugging the southeastern coast of Oahu.

The president has typically spent his vacations at the Plantation Estate, a 5,000-square foot oceanfront home less than a mile from the nearby Marine Corps Base. He customarily spends his vacation mornings working out at the gym, with trips to the golf course, ocean, or in to town for shaved ice among his favorite vacation activities.

There are no official events on the president’s schedule before he returns January 4, although he usually takes time near the Christmas holidays to greet troops at one of the nearby military bases.

He’s also expected to spend some time during his 17-day break preparing his State of the Union Address on Jan. 20, which will be his first speech to the Republican-controlled Congress.

And Obama will continue to receive his daily presidential briefings on top national security threats. That exchange will likely include consideration of what steps to take in response to North Korea’s recent hacking of Sony Pictures.

“We have been working up a range of options,” Obama said at a farewell press conference on Friday. “They will be presented to me.  I will make a decision on those based on what I believe is proportional and appropriate to the nature of this crime.”

In those remarks, the president seemed eager to begin his vacation after a long year featuring multiple crises abroad and political disaster for his party at the ballot box.

“My presidency is entering the fourth quarter; interesting stuff happens in the fourth quarter.  And I’m looking forward to it,” Obama said. “But going into the fourth quarter, you usually get a timeout.  I’m now looking forward to a quiet timeout — Christmas with my family.”

He told reporters he hoped they would also get some time to spend with their families.

“One thing that we share is that we’re away too much from them,” he said.

 Obama concluded the press conference with the Hawaiian phrase for Merry Christmas, “Mele Kalikimaka.”