A Sea Of Red

Thursday was supposed to be the highlight of the year for more than 100 kindergarteners from Stafford County, Va. They got up early and took a chartered bus to the White House for a school field trip. But when they arrived, all the 5-year-olds got was a lesson in disappointment.

"We were going to the White House, but we couldn’t get in so I felt sad," 5-year-old Cameron Stine said.

Parents say they were just 10 minutes late for their scheduled tour. School officials say White House staff said they needed to get ready for the president's luncheon with the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, so they couldn't come in.

"I was angry cause they were disappointed," parent and chaperone Paty Stine said.

A lot of preparing had gone into the trip. Conway Elementary teachers had been planning the trip for months, each child paid $20 for a seat on the chartered bus, and names were submitted to the White House for clearance.

Parents say they tried to make it on time, but their chartered buses hit heavy traffic that slowed them down substantially. They thought they were supposed to show up by 10:15, but they say they arrived at 10:25 instead, and couldn’t get in.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local ... elers.html

Well considering the fact that the owner of the Steelers thanked President Obama for their super bowl win, I'm not surprised.

who cares..good lord

i'm sure the kindergartners were DEVASTATED....

How do you not anticipate DC traffic? You'd think if you were going to the White House you'd make sure you weren't late.

no, what would be news worthy if they were on time?

Hold My Own wrote:no, what would be news worthy if they were on time?

Good point. Must have been a slow news day in DC so they took a non-story and ran with it.

ATrain wrote:Well considering the fact that the owner of the Steelers thanked President Obama for their super bowl win, I'm not surprised.

yes. i was just thinking this. and the steelers now have an enemy for LIFE!

case in point for planning to arrive early and not on time - if you aren't early, you're late. idiots.

ATrain wrote:Well considering the fact that the owner of the Steelers thanked President Obama for their super bowl win, I'm not surprised.

How could Prez Teleprompter have POSSIBLY helped the Steelers in winning the championship? I mean, seriously...

ATrain wrote:Well considering the fact that the owner of the Steelers thanked President Obama for their super bowl win, I'm not surprised.

Were the kids even going to meet Obama? Or was it just a generic tour of the White House?

Also... Obama and the owner of the Steelers are tight. He named Dan Rooney the U.S.'s ambassador to Ireland.

adam42381 wrote:

Hold My Own wrote:no, what would be news worthy if they were on time?

Good point. Must have been a slow news day in DC so they took a non-story and ran with it.

I agree--definitely must have been a slow news day...In reading the entire article, it seems like someones wires got crossed. Whitehouse had the tour set up for 9:30 but the teacher had 10:15. The teacher should have confirmed the trip a week beforehand, since they had set it up months ago...