Help us Obama, says Hawaii tourism board

Hotel occupancy rates in the winter were the lowest in at least five years, and in February - traditionally the state's busiest month - the rate dropped to 75%. That was the lowest level since 1991, during the Persian Gulf War, when it fell to 69.7%, according to Smith Travel Research.

Because of the country's stubborn recession, Americans have held tight to their travel dollars. But Hawaii's problems are compounded by an increasingly hostile attitude toward business travel, particularly when major corporations are laying off hundreds of workers and accepting government bailouts.

In 2008, business travel accounted for about 7% of all tourism in the state, or 4.42 lakh visitors, according to state officials.

In a letter to Obama last month, Governor Linda Lingle and 95 government leaders, business owners and tourism officials urged the president to block any policies that would limit business travel in the future.

"In this period of economic downturn when our government and businesses are striving to restore economic stability, the last thing we should do is implement policies or encourage behavior that jeopardizes any industry," the governor wrote.

Obama himself may have contributed to what many tourism officials see as the vilification of business travel in February.

Asked about corporate spending and the federal bailout, Obama said, "You can't get corporate jets, you can't go take a trip to Las Vegas or go down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayer's dime."

Later, the White House tried to clarify the statement, saying the president encouraged travel, except for companies accepting government bailout money.