CNN Panel Clashes Over ‘Right’ To See Obama Golfing With Tiger Woods: What Happened To Transparency?

The White House press corps expressed their frustration with not having access to President Obama during his vacation this weekend — and on Monday, Carol Costello‘s panel on CNN debated that very issue. Especially given the pressing budget troubles, do we have “the right” to have access to Obama’s vacation and golfing with Tiger Woods?

Citing “transparency,” Ron Christie said the president should at least have released some photographs — because “the American people deserve to see what the president of the United States is doing.” Costello said she didn’t “see the big deal” in having no photos.

“The larger issue here is how people feel about Obama going on vacation,” Jason Johnson said, adding that he’s going on fewer vacations than his recent predecessors. His concern, Johnson added, is with what Obama actually does.

He’s not up for re-election, Ana Navarro chimed in, so there are things he no longer has to do. It’s Obama’s “prerogative,” she said, but the press corps, too, “has a right to press” for a photo. As for herself, Navarro said she’d like to see a picture of Michelle Obama‘s “permission slip” allowing Obama to golf with Woods.

That provided the panel with some laughs and joking about Woods infamous promiscuity. A top donor was at the golfing trip, too, Pete Dominick later noted, getting back to a serious note — taking a critical look at the idea that enough donations can get you a game of golf with the president.

Costello’s issue was that “sequestration is looming.” Christie agreed, saying the expectation is that Obama would keep working — a point the panel disagreed on, with Johnson saying Obama’s vacations don’t entirely exclude work.

Take a look, via CNN: