"I'm going to see my grandma who I haven't seen in almost 18-19 months and who's getting to the age where I want to make sure I'm spending time with her on a consistent basis so that she can see her great grand children and I want to spend time with those children as well."

"We had a very long primary, we had the longest primary in history so I can imagine that folks need a break from politics," Obama said. "The majority of people have been fed a constant stream of political chatter and I'm sure that a couple of weeks off to enjoy the Olympics is exactly what the doctor ordered."

The Democrats had just wrapped up their nominating convention, and Kerry embarked on a cross-country tour. By the middle of the Athens games, Kerry was calling on Bush to denounce ads that Swift Boat Veterans for Truth had begun airing two weeks earlier, which raised questions about his military service.

Bush, in preparation for a GOP convention that followed the Olympics, launched $30 million in TV advertising, including a spot that irked the United States Olympic Committee because it used Olympic imagery to tout his decisions on the war on terror.

The trip had originally been planned as a western Pennsylvania bus tour, as Pennsylvania Avenue told you about a few weeks back. But plans changed after word of the tour leaked.

Next week's trip will begin in Erie as originally planned -- with Ridge at McCain's side -- and then head to Harrisburg. Details are still sketchy, but the tour is tentatively scheduled to then head to York and Lancaster on Tuesday.