Obama ending vacation due to Hurricane Irene

The White House on Friday evening said that President Barack Obama is cutting his Martha’s Vineyard vacation in Massachusetts short because of Hurricane Irene. He will return to Washington on Friday night instead of Saturday afternoon. Spokesman Josh Earnest said Obama made the decision shortly after urging Americans in Hurricane Irene’s path to follow warnings about the storm. Earnest said Obama decided it would be more cautious for him to be at the White House at the end of the day. Irene is expected to make landfall Saturday in North Carolina and then move up the east coast to reach as far as New York City.