Continued.
ESCAPING THE U-BOATS-- FDR selected the site in 1942 as an escape from the muggy summers of DC. Before, he had gone on the presidential yacht USS Potomac which was considered vulnerable to German U-boats in World War II.
NAMED, RENAMED--FDR called the place the USS Shangri La after the mythical Tibetan retreat in James Hilton's 1933 novel "Lost Horizon." In 1953, Eisenhower renamed it Camp David after his grandson.
A FOREIGN EXPERIENCE-- The first foreign guest at Camp David was British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in 1943. Presidents have often invited foreign dignitaries there, but all haven't liked it. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin called it "Concentration Camp de luxe."
HAPPY CAMPERS-- By one unofficial count. President Reagan spent the most time there, all, or part of 517 days. He is closely followed by George W. Bush at 487. Harry Truman used it the least with just 27 days. But, of course, he also called the White House the "great white jail."
EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE-- Jimmy Carter: "Of all the things about the presidency, I guess going to Camp David now and then is the one I would miss most."
Pat Nixon to Nancy Reagan, "Without Camp David, you'll go stir-crazy."
"The one job I would never want would be president, but to live in the White House and go to Camp David would almost make it worth it." Cooter. But, I guess I'll never get that chance to go to either.
Give me a Home at the Camp, Well, At Least a Visit. --Cooter
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