Barack Obama says Louisiana recovery is 'not a photo op issue' during visit to flood-ravaged Baton Rouge

Speaking in Baton Rouge more than a week after floods battered the Louisiana city, President Barack Obama said on Tuesday that the recovery effort was “not a photo op issue,” an apparent rebuke to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who had criticised Mr Obama for not visiting the stricken southern state earlier.

The vast floods that began on 11 August left 13 people dead and tens of thousands displaced, the worst natural disaster to hit the US since Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Mr Obama signed a disaster declaration on 14 August, directing federal agencies to assist with the recovery.

Following a brief tour of flood-ravaged neighbourhoods, Mr Obama held a press conference alongside local Louisiana politicians from both parties, during which he suggested natural disasters were “one of the few times when Washington tends not to get political.”

Yet the president has drawn criticism for his decision to remain on summer vacation rather than travel to Louisiana sooner. Baton Rouge newspaper The Advocate published an op-ed on 17 August, saying it was “past time for the president to pay a personal visit” to the state.

Mr Trump, who visited the afflicted region last Friday to meet with victims and hand out supplies, tweeted on Tuesday: “President Obama should have gone to Louisiana days ago, instead of golfing. Too little, too late!”

Louisiana’s Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards had reportedly asked Mr Obama to stay away from the state until authorities were prepared for a presidential visit. In a statement issued before Mr Trump’s arrival last week, Mr Edwards said he would “welcome” the property mogul to Louisiana, “but not for a photo op.”

open image in gallery

Echoing the Governor’s words on Tuesday, Mr Obama emphasised that the flood recovery would require a long-term commitment. “Sometimes once the flood waters pass, people’s attention spans pass,” he said. “This is not a one off, this is not a photo op issue. This is, ‘How do you make sure a month from now, three months from now, six months from now, people are still getting the help that they need?’”

More than 100,000 people have applied for federal assistance since the flooding, and federal financial support for temporary home rentals, repairs and flood insurance payments has already reached $127m, Mr Obama told reporters.

The president heaped praise on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) and its administrator, Craig Fugate, which he said had been “exemplary” in its reaction to the multiple natural disasters that have occurred during his presidency – a stark contrast to the criticism the agency received for its inadequate response in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which struck Louisiana in 2005.

“It’s important for us to take the federal government and federal workers seriously,” Mr Obama said. “There’s a tendency sometimes to bash them and think they’re faceless bureaucrats, but when you get into trouble, you want somebody who knows what they’re doing on the ground.”

Describing the damage he had witnessed to businesses and homes in Baton Rouge, Mr Obama said the “entire nation” was “heartbroken by the loss of life”. Harking back to Hurricane Katrina, he added: “I know how resilient the people of Louisiana are, and I know that you will rebuild again.”

The president also urged volunteers from across the US to help in the recovery effort, directing them to sign up via the website VolunteerLouisiana.gov. “I need all Americans to stay focused on this,” he said. “We’re glad the families I had the chance to meet are safe, but they’ve got a lot of work to do and they shouldn’t have to do it alone.”

Hillary Clinton’s campaign said on Monday that the Democratic presidential nominee would also visit Louisiana to view the flood damage, but – in comments presumably directed at Mr Trump – said she would wait until “a time when the presence of a political campaign will not disrupt the response."