President Barack Obama has returned to the Washington area after a weeklong vacation on Martha's Vineyard.

The presidential aircraft returned to the capital Sunday evening from the first family's vacation spot off the Massachusetts coast.

While on the island, Obama played golf, took first lady Michelle Obama to dinner and went for a bike ride with his daughters. He also grabbed a deep-fried seafood lunch with pal and senior adviser Valerie Jarrett.

The vacation wasn't just all play. Obama on Tuesday announced he wanted Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to serve another four-year term. On Saturday he delivered a eulogy for Sen. Edward M. Kennedy in Boston.

The first family plans another attempt at a vacation over the Labor Day weekend. This time, they'll head to Camp David, Md.

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US President Barack Obama still hopes to pass his embattled health care overhaul in 2009 in the face of growing public doubts about his approach, the White House said Friday.

Obama met with former Senate Democratic majority leader Tom Daschle, once his choice to head the US Department of Health and Human Services and the reform effort, to discuss the way forward on the plan.

"The two agreed that substantive reform that lowers costs, reforms the insurance industry, and expands coverage is too important to wait another year or another administration," spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a statement.

"They agreed to stay in touch over the coming weeks and months as this critical effort moves forward," said Gibbs.

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President Barack Obama will make his first official visit to China in November, seeking to foster collaboration on the environment, renewable energy and regional security, the new U.S. ambassador to China said.

“If we can tackle all of these, we will be able to take U.S.-China relations to new heights,” Jon Huntsman said today in Beijing at his first press meeting since arriving in the Chinese capital yesterday.

Obama accepted an invitation from Chinese President Hu Jintao in April when the two met in London at a Group of 20 summit called to deal with the global financial crisis. He is also scheduled to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Singapore in November.

The appointment of Huntsman, 49, a fluent Mandarin speaker, as Obama’s envoy underscores the importance of trade and political relations between the world’s biggest market and the largest global manufacturer. The U.S. and China have a twice- yearly strategic and economic dialogue for resolving problems and also conduct a dialogue on human-rights issues.

“The human-rights dialogue has to be regularized so that it’s not just a regular meeting, but a meaningful meeting that reflects ourselves as a country,” Huntsman said today. “It has to be comprehensive, thoughtful and include issues like climate change and the economy.”

The U.S. and China must also collaborate on security issues, including disarmament in North Korea, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran, said Huntsman, who was Republican governor of Utah when tapped to head the president’s diplomatic overtures to Beijing.

‘Goodwill and Work’

“These will require the U.S. and China to work diligently, a lot of collaboration, goodwill and work,” he said.

Huntsman learned Mandarin when he was a Mormon missionary in Taiwan. He has served as a deputy U.S. Trade Representative and as American ambassador to Singapore.

As Utah governor, Huntsman focused on improving public education, the state’s economic competitiveness and the environment. He promoted the study of Mandarin in schools, and said about 5,000 students in the state are now learning the language spoken by some 70 percent of Chinese people.

Huntsman began his remarks today with an adage in Mandarin: “When the family is happy, all is well under heaven.”

He’s joined in Beijing by his wife Mary Kaye and three daughters Mary Anne, Gracie Mae and Usha. Gracie Mae was adopted from eastern China’s Yangzhou city.

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The chairman of the House tax-writing committee says he thinks President Barack Obama can keep his promise not to raise taxes on most people and still overhaul health care.

Democratic Rep. Charlie Rangel of New York says that dealing with waste, medical errors and other problems that he says "hemorrhage" money would provide some immediate relief.

As a candidate Obama promised not to raise taxes on people earning less than $250,000 a year. Critics of the health care overhaul say it will result in huge tax increases.

Rangel says he doesn't know whether a House proposal to charge a surtax on the insurance benefits of wealthy Americans can survive in the Senate.

Rangel spoke Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."

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