Biden Has Spent More Than a Quarter of His Term in Delaware

President Joe Biden rides his bicycle at Gordon's Pond State Park in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on June 18, 2022. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

President Joe Biden has spent over a quarter of his time in office at his home in Delaware, more than his predecessors, according to a new analysis.

Since Jan. 20, 2021, the president has spent about 236 days outside the White House. So far, he’s spent 174 days in Delaware at either his home in Rehoboth Beach or his other home in Wilmington, and Biden has spent 64 days at the presidential retreat in Camp David, Maryland, according to a CNN analysis of his trips.

Former Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump were criticized in the media for playing golf on weekends. For example, Bush spent 490 days at his family’s ranch in Texas over his two terms in office, though Biden appears on pace to exceed that during his first term.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told news outlets that with the trips to Delaware, “Biden is deeply proud of his roots and his family and it has been a staple of his time in public life to never lose touch with either.”

“Presidents of the United States are constantly on the job, regardless of their location—whether they’re on a state visit overseas or just 100 miles from the White House for a short trip to Wilmington, DE,” he added. “And as all Americans can agree, it’s important for leaders to avoid becoming ensconced in Washington, DC.”

Other individuals in Biden’s orbit, including former Jill Biden press secretary Michael LaRosa, defended the president’s frequent trips.

“It is 2022, not 1922. If the rest of the country can work from home, so can the president of the United States,” LaRosa told CNN. “He spent (practically) every weekend in Delaware during his 36 years in the Senate, and his eight years as vice president.”

During much of the summer, Biden spent several weeks in isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 before testing positive again after taking Pfizer’s Paxlovid drug. After his time in isolation, Biden left the White House in early August to spend time at his Rehoboth Beach home.

Some analysts argue that that time period—during which Biden was largely out of the public eye—was the most successful stretch of his presidency to date. At that time, there were decreases in the national gas price average, a successful strike against al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahri in Afghanistan, and the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.

Republicans and conservatives have often criticized Biden for his relatively frequent vacation trips.

Tom Fitton, president of transparency group Judicial Watch, told news outlets about a month ago that “one would hope that President Biden is working when he is on ‘vacation’ in Delaware, [but] the unwillingness of the White House to disclose his official visitors at Delaware suggests that there is something to hide—including that Biden is completely checked out from his job when away from the White House.”