Politicians Head Up to Downhill Resorts

As we all take off for a holiday break, have you noticed how many presidents, ex-presidents, veeps, cabinet members and would-be presidents head for the hills, literally? VP Cheney has a place in Jackson Hole, Rummy in Taos, John Kerry in Sun Valley. The latest candidate, Mitt Romney, nominally the Massachusetts governor, retains a place in Utah where he headed the winter Olympics 2002 effort. President Ford is closely identified not with his home state of Michigan but with Beaver Creek, CO. Even Jimmy Carter has been known to take a break from good works to strap on the boards at Crested Butte, CO.

All of which suggests... what? Only that the Rockies have become a holiday playground that rivals Florida, I suppose. Or that pols know what "going downhill" means. Happy Holidays.