President Joe Biden spent a shorter-than-normal weekend at his home near Rehoboth Beach.
The President and First Lady arrived back at the White House early Sunday afternoon after arriving Friday night via the Marine One helicopter. Flight restrictions running through Saturday originally hinted at an even shorter stay. The Bidens typically leave on Sunday night or Monday morning.
No public events were scheduled. The Cape Gazette reported that the Bidens attended mass, with the president getting in a bike ride before departing on Sunday. Their home is adjacent to a Cape Henlopen State Park with bike trails and a park parking lot used as a helipad.
On Monday, the president is scheduled to meet virtually with leaders of European powers France, the U.K., Italy, and Germany to discuss the response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Also scheduled is a meeting with members of the Business Roundtable regarding the invasion.
Biden held a two-hour conversation with China’s President Xi Jinping on Friday. Few details were released, although China expressed a desire for peace in Ukraine, with Biden reportedly warning against China aiding Russia in the war effort
Their visits to the family home near the beach own have been few, with most Delaware weekends spent at his home near Greenville or Camp David in the Maryland Mountains.
Conservative media and Republicans in Congress have also taken Biden to task for not staying in the White House while the war rages in Ukraine and Covid continues to claim lives.
Thanks in part to Biden’s visits, Rehoboth has become a nationally known resort location that saw near-record tourist traffic last summer. Rehoboth is about an hour by air from the White House. Rehoboth is the closest beach to the Washington, D.C., area.
There has been some grumbling among Biden critics about a fence and wall at the family home in the North Shores area.
The fence and wall require variances from Sussex County, although that process is believed to be largely a formality.
Biden is slated to travel to Europe this week to meet with European leaders regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
