[h=1]Donald Trump plans to visit flood-ravaged Louisiana while President Obama comes under fire for not interrupting his vacation and hitting the golf course with Larry David[/h]
GOP nominee Trump and his running mate Mike Pence will travel to Louisiana on Friday
President Obama is unlikely to break from his vacation to survey Louisiana flood damage, despite calls for him to visit
White House said Obama is not indifferent to the suffering of thousands who were washed out of their homes in Baton Rouge and Lafayette areas
Obama, who is on vacation with the first family on Martha's Vineyard, Obama has not commented on the flooding
White House said he has being updated regularly and has approved a federal disaster declaration for the affected areas
He was joined by comedian Larry David on Thursday for a round of golf
By ASSOCIATED PRESS and AFP and DAILYMAIL.COM REPORTER PUBLISHED: 18:35, 18 August 2016 | UPDATED: 06:30, 19 August 2016
Donald Trump will tour the flood damage in ravaged Louisiana as President Barack Obama stays on his New England vacation amid historic flooding in the state. A campaign official familiar with the plans said on Thursday that the GOP nominee and his running mate Mike Pence will travel to the state on Friday. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the plans before they were officially announced. However, a spokesman for Louisiana's governor said his office had not been contacted by the Trump campaign.
GOP nominee Donald Trump and his running mate Mike Pence (pictured together) will tour the flood damage in ravaged Louisiana as President Barack Obama stays on his New England vacation amid historic flooding in the state
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President Barack Obama (pictured earlier this month) has come under fire for staying on his New England vacation rather than traveling to Louisiana amid historic flooding in the state
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Despite calls for him to visit and meet with responders and victims, Obama is unlikely to break from his New England vacation to survey flood damage (pictured)
Richard Carbo, spokesman for Gov. John Bel Edwards, said Trump was welcome to Louisiana, 'but not for a photo-op.' Instead, Carbo proposed Trump 'consider volunteering or making a sizable donation to the LA Flood Relief Fund to help the victims of this storm.' Trump said at a rally on Thursday that his prayers are with the people affected in Louisiana, 'a state that is very special to me.' Meanwhile, despite calls for him to visit and meet with responders and victims, Obama is unlikely to break from his New England vacation to survey flood damage
The president is currently on his annual summer vacation with the first family on Martha's Vineyard. On Thursday, he was joined by comedian Larry David and businessmen Robert Wolf and Jonathan Lavine for a round of golf, according to The Hill. The White House insists Obama is not indifferent to the suffering of thousands who were washed out of their homes in the Baton Rouge and Lafayette areas. At least 13 people have died as a result of the flooding, and at one point 11,000 were in shelters. That number has dropped as water levels have receded. In an editorial published on Wednesday, The Advocate in Baton Rouge called on Obama to visit 'the most anguished state in the union.' 'It's past time for the president to pay a personal visit, showing his solidarity with suffering Americans,' the newspaper wrote.
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Trump pictured at a rally on Thursday in North Carolina. A spokesman for Louisiana's governor said his office had not been contacted by the Trump campaign and said Trump is welcome to Louisiana but not for a 'photo-op'
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Obama pictured last year golfing on Martha's Vineyard with Larry David and Cryus Walker. On Thursday, he was joined by David and businessmen Robert Wolf and Jonathan Lavine for a round of golf
The editorial noted that Obama interrupted his two-week vacation on Martha's Vineyard earlier this week to attend a fundraiser for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton on the Massachusetts island. 'The optics of Obama golfing while Louisiana residents languished in flood waters was striking,' the editorial said. 'It evoked the precedent of the passive federal response to the state's agony in 2005, a chapter of history no one should ever repeat.'
It also said Obama can and should visit now that the once-raging floodwaters are receding. 'The president's vacation is scheduled to wrap up on Sunday. But he should pack his bags now, and pay a call on communities who need to know that in a national catastrophe, they are not alone,' the editorial said. 'The president's presence is already late to this crisis, but it's better later than never.' In 2005, then-President George W. Bush was faulted for flying over but not touching down in Louisiana in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The federal government's response to that natural disaster, in which more than 1,830 people were killed and millions more along the Gulf Coast and New Orleans were left homeless, haunted Bush for the remainder of his presidency. Obama has issued no public or written statements about the flooding.
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Baron Leblanc (left) and George Snyder move a refrigerator out of George's flooded home on Thurday in St Amant, Louisiana. Last week Louisiana was overwhelmed with flood water causing at least 13 deaths and thousands of homes damaged by the flood waters
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Tray Blazier pulls a boat as he helps a friend check in on his flooded home on Thursday in Sorrento
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A flooded baseball field at the Gonzales Civic Center pictured above. The White House insists Obama is not indifferent to the suffering of thousands who were washed out of their homes in the Baton Rouge and Lafayette areas
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Contaminated floodwaters impact an area in Ascension Parish where some 40,000 homes have been impacted by the recent flooding, as seen in an aerial view on Wednesday
The White House said he has been receiving regular updates and briefings on the situation throughout the vacation, including from Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards. Obama also approved a federal disaster declaration for affected areas of the state. FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate visited Louisiana on Wednesday, and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson was visiting on Thursday. 'As the president told Gov. Edwards over the weekend, the community of Baton Rouge has faced a difficult, even tragic, summer but can count on the ongoing prayers and unwavering support of the president and their fellow Americans in their time of need,' White House spokeswoman Jennifer Friedman said. Edwards, defending the administration's response on Thursday, said he has spoken daily with the White House and has received quick responses to each request he has lodged with the administration. He said he would prefer Obama hold off on visiting because such stops pull local police and first responders into providing security.
Elsie Lazarus is overcome with emotion as she sits in her flooded living room while retrieving what she can from her home on Thursday in St Amant
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Tommy Gallagher retrieves items from his flooded home on Wednesday in Sorrento
'Quite frankly that is not something that I want to go through right now,' Edwards said in Baton Rouge while accompanying Johnson. 'And so while the president is welcome to visit, I would just as soon he give us another a week or two, get back to a greater sense of normalcy here.' The White House also noted that Louisiana's top elected Republican, Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, on Thursday also praised the federal government's response during an interview with NPR. With massive floodwaters receding in Louisiana, officials in the state grappled on Thursday with the next stage of the disaster response - how to help affected residents recover. Officials continued to search tens of thousands of homes and countless cars for victims and survivors of the severe flooding that began Friday after heavy rains.
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Residents survey flooding in Sorrento on Wednesday. With massive floodwaters receding in Louisiana, officials in the state grappled on Thursday with the next stage of the disaster response - how to help affected residents recover
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Cattle are taken by boat through a flooded street to dry land on Tuesday in Sorrento
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Caskets are seen floating in flood waters near a cemetery on Wednesday in Gonzales
More than 86,000 people have registered for US government emergency assistance. Johnson, who is in charge of the department that will dole out the aid, visited areas affected by the historic flooding since last Friday and met with local officials to discuss the nascent recovery effort. 'I will be briefing the president on the situation that I see here at some point very soon,' Johnson told a news conference, adding that President Barrack Obama has been receiving daily briefings about the ongoing emergency. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which reports to Johnson, began on Thursday to assess the homes that were affected by floodwaters. Some people could receive financial assistance in as soon as 48 hours, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said. Meanwhile, more residents were leaving shelters and heading home to begin the cleanup process. Overnight, shelters housed 8,000 people and by midday on Thursday that number had dropped to about 4,000, officials said.
Members of the Louisiana Army National Guard help place sandbags to protect the city hall in Lake Arthur on Wednesday
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Gulfport, Missississippi firefighters load water and cleaning supplies donated by Bayou View Elementary School families in Gulfport for flood victims in Louisiana
Many people were gutting their homes, ripping out drywall and insulation and removing furniture, light fixtures and appliances.
Gail McGovern, the president of the American Red Cross who called the scale of the disaster 'absolutely enormous,' cautioned residents to be careful of electrical fires - known to be the next hazard following flooding.
The relief agency will begin fanning out into neighborhoods, distributing items such as pails, mops and bleach, along with food and water, she said.
Electricity was restored to most of the 40,000 customers that lost power, though 7,800 remained without it.
While many areas were drying out, the National Weather Service forecast that all waterways would not fall below flood stage until Friday.
Twenty-two of the state's 64 parishes, Louisiana's equivalent to counties, have been declared disaster areas.
