Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said Sunday that people around the USA are just starting to pay attention to the extent of flooding that killed at least 13 people in Louisiana.
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Obama “is also eager to get a first-hand look at the impact of the devastating floods, hear from more officials about the response, including how the federal government can assist and tell the people of Louisiana that the American people will be with them”, spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement.
Bel Edwards said last week that while his state is struggling to recover from the catastrophic floods that have killed dozens, caused billions of dollars in property damage and displaced tens of thousands of families, officials should not plan to visit unless they are bringing direct aid.
But Obama, who’s now vacationing on Martha’s Vineyard, has yet to visit the stricken state despite calls from local media to cut his vacation short. President Barack Obama declared the state was undergoing a major disaster Sunday, freeing up federal emergency funds.
As for Hillary Clinton, she opted to give the governor a phone call instead of a visit.
“My heart breaks for Louisiana, and right now, the relief effort can’t afford any distractions”, she said on Facebook, directing people to support organizations providing assistance. A local friend who’s a Democrat, and black, sent me a message saying that memo was the most offensive thing she’s seen in Obama’s entire eight years in office, and that she’s gone from being furious that he was on vacation to now being furious that he’s coming.
Nothing Obama can do or say while he’s here on Tuesday is going to make up for the fact that he partied and played golf for a whole week on Martha’s Vineyard while these people dealt with the flood, or that his administration had the gall to upbraid people about racism in treating their neighbors without any evidence this was actually happening.
Historic flooding has devastated parts of southeastern Louisiana.
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On Friday, Trump’s motorcade drove past piles of possessions and building materials that had been ripped out of flooded homes en route to Greenwell Springs Baptist Church in a hard-hit portion of East Baton Rouge Parish. We are not here to say who got here first. The owners lost nearly all their possessions. They just come to sightsee? “He took time out of his busy schedule to come here”, Michelli said.
