What the political scientist David Mayhew said of members of Congress is just as true of Chief Executives: first term Presidents are “single-minded seekers of re-election.” Given the Permanent Campaign for reelection, they naturally look for ways in which their office can be used to their electoral advantage. Presidents have turned the White House into a hotel and café (Bill Clinton) and used federal funds to deploy “assets”—Cabinet members and the President—to electoral battlegrounds (George W. Bush).
Citation
Saikrishna Prakash, Limit Use of Presidential Perks? Yeah, Right, New York Times (September 9, 2012).