Trump and Pence Tour Louisiana Flood Damage
19 Aug 2016 by Michael Patrick Leahy
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trumparrived in Baton Rouge, Louisiana Friday morning to tour the flood damaged state where at least 13 have been killed and 30,000 have been forced to leave their homes.
Trump and Pence emerged from the Trump campaign airplane together Friday morning, but Pence arrived in the state shortly before Trump.
“Pence, along with his wife Karen and daughter Charlotte, received a briefing on the damage from Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, Lieutenant Gov. Billy Nungesser and Commissioner Eric Skrmetta,” ABC News reported.
Notably, Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, did not brief Pence.
On Thursday, Edwards warned Trump not to turn his visit to Louisiana into a “photo op.”
Neither Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton nor President Barack Obama intend to visit Louisiana over the weekend, as Breitbart News reported on Thursday.
Mainstream media outlets, which were harshly critical of President George W. Bush’s handling of the 2005 Katrina flooding of New Orleans, have refused to criticize President Obama’s failure to leave his Martha’s Vineyard vacation to visit Louisiana.
Chris Cilizza, writing at the Washington Post, for example, offered this defense of the president: “Here’s Why President Obama Isn’t Stopping His Vacation to Visit the Louisiana Flooding.”
The I-can’t-believe-he-is-on-vacation-while-terrible-news-event-happens narrative is neither new nor unique to Obama. George W. Bush was regularly pilloried by his political opponents for extended vacations at his ranch in Crawford, Tex. (Bush once took a five-week break during the summer of 2005.)
And, as has been documented ad nauseam, there’s really no such thing as a vacation for a president of the United States.“Presidents don’t get vacations — they just get a change of scenery,” Nancy Reagan famously told critics of her husband’s regular trips to the family’s ranch. Work, especially in this digital age, follows you around.
Still, it’s worth noting this moment. And that’s because it speaks to Obama’s unique and long-lasting commitment to not playing by a core rule of modern politics: making at least some decisions based on “how it looks” and/or “how it will play.”
Obama has long been a rejectionist on this front. His stubborn refusal to rebut claims regarding what was in the Affordable Care Act badly hamstrung his party’s attempt to win the fight for public perception on the law. His unwillingness to say the words “radical Islamic terror” have become a hobbyhorse for conservatives and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. And so on and so forth.
Obama just doesn’t like to fake it. If he doesn’t want to do something or thinks it’s stupid to do it — regardless of whether it actually is stupid — he won’t do it.
On Thursday, Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson explained that President Obama was not going to interrupt his Martha’s Vineyard vacation to visit Louisiana because “he has a very busy schedule.”
That schedule on Thursday included a round of golf with television star Larry David and Bain Capital co-managing director Jonathan Lavine.
Hillary Clinton has offered no public comment on the Louisiana flooding since this tweet on Thursday:
Closely monitoring the flooding in Louisiana & Mississippi. The @RedCross is helping displaced families in need: https://t.co/sSYTbQMndP -H
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) August 16, 2016
UPDATE: AP reports on Trump’s visit to Louisiana Friday morning:
12:00 p.m.
Donald Trump is receiving a warm reception as he tours a heavily-damaged portion of East Baton Rouge Parish in Louisiana.
The GOP nominee and his running mate Mike Pence were greeted by a crowd of supporters after visiting a local Baptist church where volunteers have gathered.
“Thank you for coming, Mr. Trump,” one woman screamed.
“We knew you would be here for us!” another shouted.
Trump greeted the crowd, shaking hands and signing hats.
But he turned down a plate of the south Louisiana specialty, jambalaya, offered to him.
___
11:35 a.m.
Donald Trump and Mike Pence have stopped at a Baptist church in a heavily damaged portion of East Baton Rouge Parish.
The Republican candidates met a group of volunteers who have been cooking meals for flood victims and helping the elderly gut their homes.
Trump asked questions about the extent of the damage and thanked volunteers for their efforts.
The candidate also met with Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council. Perkins own home was flooded.
The prominent Christian conservative says he wants Trump to “let the country know” about the extent of the damage.
Many Louisianans feel the flooding has been ignored by the national news.
http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/08/19/trump-pence-arrive-louisiana-tour-flood-damage/
‘He Has A Very Busy Schedule’ — DHS Secretary Defends Obama’s Absence In Louisiana
19 Aug 2016 by Charlie Spiering
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson visited Louisiana yesterday to reassure local officials and citizens in the state that President Obama cared about the victims of the devastating floods.
When asked by reporters during a press conference if President Barack Obama would take time from his vacation to visit the state, Johnson was unable to commit.
“As I said, the president can’t be everywhere, I know he has a very busy schedule this fall and in the coming days,” Johnson said.
He assured the people of Louisiana that Obama was monitoring the disaster from his vacation home in Martha’s Vineyard.
“When you are the chief executive of the entire U.S. government, you can’t be everywhere including places you would like to be,” he said, assuring again that Obama was “on top” of the situation.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, also defended the president’s absence, assuring reporters that he was not complaining about his relationship with federal aid.
“The president is welcome to visit whenever he wants to visit,” he said. “When he wants to visit we’re going to receive him and we’re going to do whatever’s necessary to make sure that that visit goes off without a hitch.”
Edwards said that he had been in touch with Obama senior advisor Valerie Jarrett to discuss the federal response, while Obama was vacationing. He added that the security required for a presidential visit was significant and that he preferred law enforcement resources to remain assisting flood victims.
“Quite frankly, that’s not something I want to go through right now,” he said. “While the president is welcome to visit, I would just assume he give us another week or two, get back to a greater sense of normalcy and then he can visit.”
DHS Sec. Jeh Johnson: President Obama can't go to Louisiana because he has a "busy schedule" pic.twitter.com/otFpRnZP1Z
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) August 19, 2016
COMMENT
Perhaps MB Obama could not figure out a way the blame Christians or guns for the flood so he stayed on the golf course
http://www.breitbart.com/2016-presidential-race/2016/08/19/busy-schedule-dhs-secretary-defends-obamas-absence-louisiana/%5D
LOUISIANA FLOODS: TRUMP VISITS, OBAMA GOLFS, HILLARY SLEEPS
Obama spends more time on golf course, despite Trump owning several
Donald Trump is meeting the victims of the Louisiana floods on Friday – while President Obama golfs and Hillary Clinton naps.
It’s ironic – yet revealing – how the GOP nominee who made millions building golf courses is visiting the flood-ravaged areas of Baton Rouge while Obama, who once criticized then-President Bush for his mishandling of Hurricane Katrina, plays on golf courses.
In fact, Obama just played his 300th round of golf as president.
“I think my irons are good, my drive is straight but unimpressive in length, and my putting’s decent, chipping is OK,” he told the Golf Channel.
It’s quite likely Obama has spent more time on golf courses over the past year than Trump, despite the latter owning several courses across the world.
Meanwhile Hillary is no where to be found; her last public appearance was on Wednesday and she has no scheduled events until Sunday, underscoring her lack of energy and poor health overall.
At least Obama has the energy to golf; Hillary can barely stand up for long periods of time.
“She makes the speech, she turns off the teleprompter,” Trump said. “Look, what happens, she gives a short speech then she goes home, goes to sleep, she shows up two days later.”
In fact, numerous photos and videos suggest Hillary has trouble standing unsupported for extended periods of time, which is why she constantly uses chairs as makeshift crutches while giving speeches.
Hillary also apparently suffers from Parkinson’s or a similar disease and experiences seizures from flashing lights, sources inside the Secret Service told Infowars.
In addition, Hillary has experienced several seizures and near-comatose freeze-ups during speeches which, combined with her previous blood clot, concussions and severe coughing fits, reveal she’s hiding serious medical issues that jeopardize her ability to hold public office in general, much less the White House.
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