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Updated: Obama Goes to Soccer Game that Didn’t Exist?

Updated at the botttom:

So, let’s talk this one out. The AP reports:

About two hours before reporters were supposed to be in position to leave with the president, Obama left the grounds of the White House. Members of the press were told he was attending one of his daughter’s soccer games in northwest Washington, D.C.

The White House press corps traditionally travels with the president anywhere he goes, inside and outside the country, to report on the president’s activities for the benefit of informing the public and for historical record.

After Obama left, a press aide hastily gathered members of the media who happened to be at the White House early or working on other matters. They rushed to a van and left the White House to catch up with the president.

Too late. By the time, the press van appeared to arrive at the president’s location, the press was told he was already departing. Time to go back to the White House.

Reporters and photographers didn’t have a chance to see him or his vehicle to verify his presence at any location.

Time also reported the time and location of the supposed game as at:

The president left the White House at approximately 9:20 to attend one of his daughter’s soccer games at 40th and Chesapeake NW. A pool was hastily called at around 9:35 and drove north at 9:43 to catch the president before the game ended. We didn’t make it. The President returned to the White House at 10:17. The pool returned at 10:30.

So that is the story. Except there are some problems with it. The first one is a biggie in that there were no scheduled soccer games for Sidwell Friends April 10 as evidenced here. The second is that the area reported that the game was played at appears to be one of high crime as documented here and here. Additionally, this is a pic of the field where he went to watch the game.

This just does not make sense. The President of the United States venturing out (was Secret Service even with him?) to a soccer game that didn’t exist in a high-crime area.

If the President left the White House at 9:20AM as reported, according to Mapquest, it takes about 16 minutes to get from the White House to 40th and Chesapeake NW, bringing his arrival time to the field at 9:36AM or so.  But, then he would have had to leave the field at the latest at 10:00AM to return to the White House at the documented time of 10:17AM.  So, he spent about 20 minutes at the game?  When did the game end?  That time is vague as well.

Furthermore, with all of the technology that people have–iPhones, Blackberries–not one person took a photo of Obama? And the press didn’t get a shot of him getting into his vehicle? For a person who loves the camera and every single opportunity to be photographed, this just does not add up, folks.

It just doesn’t pass the test of logistics and definitely smells like some kind of cover up, especially with the casual tone of the report. It will be interesting to see what Robert Gibbs, David Axelrod, and company will say on the talk shows and at Monday’s press conference. But, remember, the truth never changes.

Update: By the way, this is what Obama looks like at a soccer game. Still no pictures–even two days later. Where did the President go? Where is the media? Considering we just disarmed to Russia and Poland’s President and 95 others were killed hours before, and Kyrgystan’s government was just overthrown should raise even more questions.

Crossposted to Right Wing News

COMMENTS

  • Just_Saying

    Just asking…
    .

    • Finrod

      AFAIK, Richard Nixon was the last President to leave the White House without the White House press crew. Except, Nixon left to go tour a flood zone. I read about this years ago; Nixon spent hours off touring a flood zone and was by that account an entirely different person when he didn’t have the press around him– warm and personable, exactly the opposite of how he came across on camera. The WHPC was furious about it, and insisted on there being at least a minimal press contingent with the President whenever he would leave the White House thereafter.

      That is, until today, apparently.

  • acat

    Who was in town at the time?

    What countries had high powered diplomats in the area?

    Were any U.S. generals who are normally overseas in town?

    How about large donors? Anyone in D.C.?

    While I don’t think this is anything to get all wee-wee’d up over, it’s certainly something to give the thousands of eyes of the blogosphere yet another chance to steal a march on the Mainly Stupid Media …

    Mew

    • Cat Corben

      has unaccounted time off the grounds of the White House. What was he doing? Who drove him, was Secret Service with him? The bloggers will find out, b/c as you note the highly paid media will not.

      • Beasley Beesmeal

        elections have consequences

    • merryj1

      He just slipped off to the roof (or basement, or quiet area) for a couple of cigarettes and a little alone time; or he and his wife slipped off for an unscheduled nooner; or, maybe he just said, “F it! I’m not in the mood to deal with those media hyenas!” and all those bright lights in his “spokespersons” stable didn’t know what to say or how to say it, so someone tried to ‘wing it’ with a cover story and then they were just stuck with a stupid lie. Or, maybe it was a clever plot to send the press on a wild goose chase so a Chicago Boss could slip into the WH without having his photo snapped. Anyone know where Kipout Louie was that night? Or Swivel-nose Tony?

  • Alone_in_the_Dotte

    Hummm. It would appear that the park in question is home to the (supposedly) former Presidential Emergency Facility known as “Cartwheel.”

    http://coldwar-c4i.net/PEF/Cartwheel/001002-14.html

    There’s been construction at “Cartwheel” as recently as 2002.

    http://coldwar-c4i.net/PEF/Cartwheel/021222-17A.html

    • Finrod

      What Obama was doing at that facility, we can only speculate. I’m guessing that the facility is not so ‘former’ as previously reported.

    • jstjoan

      I

      • grandma

        TY. Now leads to more questions.

  • usadying

    Youth club sports run practically all year. I did a google search on DC youth club soccer teams and didn’t have much luck. Do they exist? However, that’s an interesting location for the president’s daughter to be playing. Are there any public Secret Service logs of the daughters’ whereabouts? I doubt it. Until this happened, I didn’t know the WH press pool had to accompany the President everywhere.

    • alvnjms

      They don’t have to, that’s why you didn’t know. They just often are.

  • Tbone

    Or, he headed over to Adams Morgan to see a guy about a chalked birth certficate.

  • tecash

    this has probally happened more than has been reported. It may be due to several reasons:

    Obama has always been known for dealing with people the majority of this country find deplorable. To do so as a president would bring way too much heat, but he must as he is in way to many anti american back pockets. So he must be sneaky.

    He was going to see a fortune teller so he can know what to do next to screw this country.

    He has fear that he will be assisinated. I can not see how any president in the history of this country could fear this more than Obama. He is a commie, but he is not stupid. He has to know how people feel about his attempts to destroy this country and the fear would be well placed.

    Or, he will soon lie to the country that he is setting the example on how to be fit by quitting smoking. He is testing now to see if he can sneak off and get a smoke without being seen. I mean you know it is do as I say, not do as I do in Obama’s opinion!

  • bk

    1) In many of them he is facing a different direction than the other parents on the sidelines.

    2) Wouldn’t there be Secret Service folks in some of these shots? (Especially given all the racist violent right-wingers we keep hearing about.)

    • fluff1818

      One or more very reliable source(s) in or around Washington advise they heard “through the grapevine” that the Usurper spent time without the press while he was “taking care of some sort of urgent personal business on or near ‘R Street’ in Washington, only a mile or two from the White House. ‘They’ claim he has recently become extremely irritable and he is experiencing severe mood swings. No one wants to come near him unless they’re forced to.”. He MAY have attended a soccer game before or after the meeting (no one would say for sure), but the “soccer game” appears to be nothing more than a cover story. The source(s) vehemently refused to provide more specific information (“NO, SIR!”), except to speculate that the Usurper’s multiple substance abuse issues seem to have reached a critical point and ‘they’ do not believe he will be capable of performing his duties much longer… WHOA, DID I JUST LOCATE HIS MEETING PLACE?! At this moment, I’m viewing a map of “R Street, N.W.” and the KENYA EMBASSY is located at 2249 R Street, N.W., near the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.! Was the “urgent personal business” a face to face plea for Kenya’s silence? Hmmmmmm… http://puzo1.blogspot.com/2010/04/current-minister-of-kenyan-government.html

      • http://www.suvstrategery.blogspot.com SoFiMil

        n/t

      • Christine (Trelaina)

        He disappeared because he FINALLY decided to take action against the amazingly true (despite debunked) statements from the birthers! Even though letting them regurgitate year old April Fools jokes and insert the CT into every minute of their lives makes the GOP look foolish and the talking points for November easy….he just can’t take it anymore! Wow!

        And who, pray tell, was this incredibly reliable source?

        • Woo_girl

          Don’t know how reliable the source is, never heard of it, but then I’m new to this stuff.

          http://jeffersonsrebels.blogspot.com/2010/04/james-orengo-kenyan-minister-of-lands.html

      • 6eorge Jetson

        nt

    • alvnjms

      Perhaps instead of just hearing about the threats of violence you could read the post above yours and its references to Vitamin Bullet. Ya’ll are a little paranoid. I’m just saying is all.

  • http://thesandsinstitute.org Vassar Bushmills

    …his red phone couldn’t find on Saturday when Poland died.

    Great reporting. A keeper.

  • grandma

    Narcissist Man can no longer poke fun at birthers because his birth place isn’t a “hot” topic anymore.

    He may have just needed something else for people to speculate about so he could ridicule a new speculation.

    Or he needed to cause a diversion for something else.

    Or, he just needed to get away from Nancy.

  • alvnjms

    Maybe he only SAID there was a soccer game, then he and Biden rigged up some evidence, like “I have two kids” or something, but really he wanted to give Saul Alinsky a no bid contracts on the concession stand. Drat! He’s beaten us already! Robert Novak, where are you when we need you?

    • http://www.suvstrategery.blogspot.com SoFiMil

      (My brother loves soccer and still plays on club teams.)

  • Beasley Beesmeal

    ‘By the time, the press van appeared to arrive at the president

  • flicka47

    The last soccer game played at Sidwell was back in November & there are none scheduled for the rest of the year….
    So,he had to have traveled back in time to see the game…

  • JadedByPolitics

    a couple of hours with “someone”, “somewhere”….Clinton got away with his peccadilloes because the Corrupt Media loved him too, so WE shall see!

  • freedom4us

    Go to redstate.com and you won’t find this post unless you click on a comment about it. Is anyone else experiencing the same problem?

  • pac_NY

    Let’s see: He went to a soccer game that didn’t occur and could be verified as a false story, no press in attendance, and the location reportedly a high crime area. By the time the wild goose chase was over, he had returned to the White House.

    Hmmmm… sounds like BHO slipped out to score drugs.

    I betcha.

  • Christine (Trelaina)

    His daughter said “dad, just for once I’d like to spend time with you without the press around” and he obliged, even sending the press on a wild goose chase to pull it off.

    That’s the only option I can come up with that has any legitimacy.

  • Christine (Trelaina)

    I mean, the man has groupies all over the WH who would gladly rob a bank for him and keep it quiet to the end of his/her days. He couldn’t find one to score a drug deal for him if that’s what he wanted?

    I admit it’s really strange, but this seems off the list of possibilities.

  • Christine (Trelaina)

    it’s on the list of diaries.

    Try CONTROL+F5….

  • pac_NY

    more or less, though apparently I’m not the first to suggest BHO may have slipped away briefly to procure some illegal recreational substance. Besides, loyalties in D.C. being what they are, and BHO being somewhat paranoid, I don’t think he’d long trust anyone to do his clandestine business, if that were the case.

    Oh that Obama! He’s such a man of mystery.

  • Christine (Trelaina)

    As a friend said earlier today, if it’s legit he should just come out with it….send Gibbs on the Sunday shows.

    Of course, if he’s deliberately feeding the conspiracy theorists….there was talk of this yesterday on #tcot, that old, already debunked birther stories are popping back up and they may be plants to get the birthers to go berserk again….wouldn’t it be cool to also add a mysterious ditch of the press corps?

  • http://www.laborunionreport.comandhttp://www.laborunionreport.blogspot.com LaborUnionReport

    Nah. He would have just had them in for tea at the White House…

  • NoDoze

    it looks like a softball or baseball diamond. I do not see any soccer goals, and the ground is bare. That is not how soccer fields are set up.

  • 6eorge Jetson

    Obama can’t say no to the boss.

  • Joshua Persons

    Malia Obama is on the Severna Park Tsunami (or at least was last year). The Tsunami did have a game Saturday:

    http://www.wagsl.com/schedules/Spring2010/15603157.html

    The league the Tsunami are in does play at Fort Reno:

    http://www.wagsl.com/scripts/runisa.dll?M2.65928:gp:2126241302.8390:80737+Elements/Display+E+46241+++++20297137+21769022

    There is a discrepancy as to location, since the team was scheduled to pay at a field other than Fort Reno, but that could be due to any variety of factors, including misreporting by Time. Note that the game time matches what has been reported.

  • Cat Corben

    and Severna Park is no where near the White House. Period.

  • Aaron Gardner

    none the less watched a soccer match.

    Via Google maps the drive one way is 46mins. The President was only gone for an hour total.

    I know he is a god and all, but I don’t think he can bend time. ;)

    I don’t know what he was doing that morning, but I doubt it was a soccer game.

    Doesn’t really matter though really. The real problem is that he broke protocol. It is just another sign of his arrogance.

  • Joshua Persons

    Are you really suggesting that the First Daughter, who lives in Washington, DC, wouldn’t be able to play for a team in the WASHINGTON AREA GIRLS SOCCER LEAGUE because of transportation issues?

    Is this Obama girls fan page all part of the big conspiracy?
    http://kailysiakaila.blogspot.com/2009_05_01_archive.html

    Is the WSAGL part of the conspiracy as well, for suggesting that Severna Park could be part of the Washington DC area, or that Fort Reno is an acceptable field for an outdoor soccer game?

    Seriously, guys. The fringe conspiracy theories aren’t supposed to be gaining such traction here.

  • http://slcliberty.blogivists.com randy streu

    but really, all the page does, unless I missed something, was parrot a headline. No need to be a part of any conspiracy.

    Much like the way most people simply parrot the lines they’re fed by the media, it’s not that they, themselves, are part of trying to do anything or hide anything — just ignorant enough to fall for it.

    Not that I’m convinced there really IS anything to this — I just find the whole situation a little weird.

  • Joshua Persons

    But in a very trivial way. Why did Obama decide to go to his daughter’s game on the spur of the moment? What’s with the discrepancy between scheduled playing field and actual playing field? These questions are much less weighty than those presented (and apparently, still clung to) by the OP. I don’t really think they’re newsworthy at all.

    The soccer game did take place; the field is a valid soccer field for use by the league Malia is in. The “big” questions have easy answers.

  • Joshua Persons

    Much closer:

    http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=1600+Penn+Ave,+D.C.&daddr=Lynwood+Rd+Severna+Park,+MD+21146&geocode=FQ2pUQIdP01p-ymDSQikbLi3iTF76kC_B1H-DA;FaRvVAIdeVhv-ylLTyvTqPu3iTHcBj0m6J5sjQ&hl=en&mra=ls&vps=2&sll=39.00888,-76.788605&sspn=0.367086,0.727158&ie=UTF8

    Maybe that’s what happened: the location was changed on short notice, and the President said, “Hey, I can actually make that.”

    Yes, he broke protocol, which was stupid and perhaps arrogant. I’m not denying that in the least. What I’m saying is there’s not the slightest evidence of conspiracy or a deeper meaning. Occam’s Razor, guys — or maybe Hanlon’s…

  • Joshua Persons

    http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=white+house+washington+dc&daddr=fort+reno+washington+dc&hl=en&geocode=FbqHUQId4YNo-yGuHQhGp-nLVA%3BFUxbUgIdPeZn-yEG35E6D65WjQ&mra=ls&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=49.624204,79.013672&ie=UTF8&z=13

  • Aaron Gardner

    That still leaves him no time to actually see the soccer match.

    Honestly, he couldn’t have gone far away at all. D.C. isn’t what you would call the most functional town wrt traveling. ;)

    I am not saying there is some big conspiracy, just that the laws of space and time don’t really match with the story that has been given and then re-given.

    And like I said, the main problem is his continued disdain for protocol. It smacks of arrogance. And eventually it could lead to him getting hurt.

    We can’t have uninvited guests in the WH and other breaches of protocol and keep the President safe.

  • Joshua Persons

    15 minutes away according to the Google Maps check I just did, and that’s not even considering this is the President’s motorcade we’re talking about. Traffic, lights, and speed limit are close to irrelevant.

  • Joshua Persons

    “And like I said, the main problem is his continued disdain for protocol. It smacks of arrogance. And eventually it could lead to him getting hurt.”

  • Aaron Gardner

    That second location is possible, but yeah, not the point. You get it. ;)

  • Common_Cents
  • jackbenimble

    And given that Justice Kennedy just announced his retirement from the SCOTUS and that Andy Sterns just announced his resignation as President of the SEIU, I think I know who the next Supreme Court Justice will be. /wink