The Ugly:
Finally (and perhaps this should be a subset of the previous point), the unfulfilled promise to the teams that they would meet the president of the United States. Honestly, I don't know what to say about this. It is very unacceptable, not only to me, but to the teams as well! Turning something that ought to have been a momentous and historic moment into a non-memorable joke is no way to create a truly amazing experience for anyone involved. It also demeans the sacredness of the presidential office (yes, I said it was sacred, even despite the fact I don't respect the man in the office myself. Props to Max for recognizing that.), making it seem as though meeting the President of the United States is merely a cheap, gift-shop-type, tourist event. Conclusion: If you can't get the president to meet with the teams in person then scrap the task entirely, and get a much better one. This lameness could very easily have been avoided.
Completely agree. It was this task that put Mona and Beth really behind due to a bad cabby too.
But Mona & Beth also didn't give the cabby the right address. The clue said 1100 Pennsylvania Ave, but IIRC, they told the cabbie they were going to the White House, which is 1600 Pennsylvania.
That being said, I've been to DC a few times, and one time when I was there on a school trip, I actually did that "photo with the President" thing back when George W. was President, so honestly, I thought it was hilarious that that's what they ended up doing. (Plus it did include the classic TAR "clue on the back of a photo you took" element, so I liked that.)
The only real thing that I can think of this season that really grinds my gears was the fact that they had a luck task in the finale (the spy Roadblock). When there's a million dollars on the line, there's no room for a luck task.