Greg Dohler/The Gazette
Barack Obama Elementary School students (front row, from left) Jaylon Carver, 9, of Upper Marlboro; Kyla Harris, 7, of Upper Marlboro; Joyce Pomells, 8, of Upper Marlboro; (back row, from left) Ivana Leake, 11, of Upper Marlboro; Toni Chase, 10, of Upper Marlboro; Armante Wilson, 11, of Upper Marlboro; and Kelly Webster, 10, of Upper Marlboro stand at their Upper Marlboro school in front of a mural of the president. Students say they have been inspired by the president and hope he will visit their school someday.
Since his election, President Barack Obama (D) has had a strong presence in Prince George's County. He has used local sites as the backdrop for national issues: rallies for health care reform at the University of Maryland, College Park; voter turnout at Bowie State University; and economic initiatives at businesses in Bladensburg and Landover. Not to mention, he travels to the county when he uses Air Force One, which flies in and out of Joint Base Andrews in Camp Springs, where he's also been known to hit the links.
Prince George’s officials say the visits — numbering about 10 since 2009 — raise the county’s visibility nationally and provide a boost to the businesses he visits, though others dispute the financial benefits, and costs incurred by the county are closely guarded.
“The president needs to be out there,” said David Abshire, former U.S. Ambassador to NATO and president of the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress. “The worst thing is a president that is out of touch when you have an economy that's worse than the year before.”
The county’s popularity among presidents is not new. Former Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening (D), who served as Prince George’s County executive from 1982 to 1994, said the county’s diversity and proximity to the White House make it an ideal backdrop for presidential announcements. The president can make a speech in the county and get back to Washington, D.C., without any major travel time, Glendening said.
And the visits cross party lines. Former Republican President Ronald Reagan’s visits to the county were so frequent and county staff became so used to working with the Secret Service, the department tasked with protecting the president, that Glendening once arranged with ease for his son to meet Reagan in the White House, he said.
Given the large amount of support for Obama — who received 89 percent of the county vote in the 2008 presidential election — Glendening said his visits are to be expected.
“It’s no surprise to me that he comes here regularly,” Glendening said.
For businesses, however, a visit from Obama could have financial benefits, according to Abshire.
"If you've got an entrepreneur trying to get his brand out there and trying to get better-known ... that's a clear boost," he said, pointing out that a visit provides national publicity that can translate into more customers.
There are exceptions, of course.
"On a personal level, it was great for me and the employees to meet a sitting president," said Brenden Quinn, president of Ernest Maier Inc., a Bladensburg-based concrete masonry company that Obama visited in October 2010 to tout initiatives to increase hiring at small businesses. But the visit didn't boost business, he said.
"I'm glad to share the experience, but it doesn't get you the next job," Quinn said.
And presidential visits are not without cost.
"It's a terrific disruption," said Abshire. "You're going to have county police, municipal police ... the FBI's in there."
State Sen. Douglas J.J. Peters (D-Dist. 23) of Bowie recalled that Obama's visit to Metropolitan Archives, a document storage business he co-owns in Landover, was the first time he had ever seen Metro halted, as Secret Service agents stopped trains from moving through the nearby Cheverly station for at least 20 minutes to make sure the area was secure.
The county costs incurred by a visit from the president are elusive. Information about security procedures is not made public, but the Secret Service often heavily relies on assistance from local law enforcement when the president travels, said Max Milien, a Secret Service spokesman. Local police bring an expertise on their area, Milien said.
Milien and county officials declined to say how much a presidential visit costs the county, citing security concerns.
Scott Peterson, spokesman for County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D), said that whatever the expense, the county welcomes visits from Obama, who can bring a level of positive media attention that would be very difficult for the area to achieve on its own.
"It's an honor for the president to come and feature a business or a good story from Prince George's County," Peterson said. "We welcome any president that wants to come."
The president's visits have not included a stop at Barack Obama Elementary School, which opened in August 2010 — a fact that perplexes some students who feel an appearance is overdue. Nonetheless, they say they're proud to be at the school, and Obama continues to inspire them.
Fifth-grader Toni Chase, 10, of Upper Marlboro said she was excited when she found out her new school would be named for the president.
"I ran upstairs to my room, shut the door, locked it and screamed very loud into my pillow," Toni said. "I really admire Barack Obama because he's a really good man and worked hard when he was young," adding that she hopes to follow his example.
Several Obama Elementary students kept shifting the topic of discussion from the hope of Obama’s visit to ways they could help their community, such as raising money for cancer research or spending time with the elderly.
“They’re so excited to be in a school that bears his name,” said Michelle Marek, the school’s assistant principal. “They really sit up and listen to his message [of community service].”
And while the students acknowledged that Obama was busy with his executive responsibilities and family life, they would still like him to find time to drop by the school.
"I think he should come. It's named after him," said fourth-grader Kelly Webster, 10, of Upper Marlboro.
dleaderman@gazette.net
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