Romney visits Louisiana Friday, Obama to visit Monday
Mitt Romney plans to visit hurricane-ravaged Louisiana on Friday, August 31, 2012, while President Barack Obama will be visiting on Monday.
Mitt Romney visited Louisiana on Friday to survey the damage after the state was hit by Hurricane Isaac, according to USA Today.
"I'm here to learn," the GOP presidential candidate during his stop.
Though a campaign spokeswoman told Politico earlier that President Barack Obama had no plans to visit the Gulf state, it was announced later that he would make visit. White House officials told reporters, while en route to Fort Bliss, Texas, that he would make the trip on Monday.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said Obama would survey the damage, meet first responders and make sure all the state's needs were being met.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sent out a statement criticizing Romney's visit as the "height of hypocrisy." He claimed GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan would cut funding for disaster relief, according to USA Today.
More on GlobalPost: Romney delivers passionate, predictable speech
On Wednesday, while taking a break from the Republican National Convention to speak in Indianapolis, Romney said, "Our thoughts are, of course, with the people of the Gulf Coast states. Seven years ago today, they were bracing for Hurricane Katrina. This afternoon they are enduring Isaac," according to CNN.
He continued, "We're grateful that it appears Isaac will spare them from the kind of damage we saw during Katrina, but for many in the Gulf Coast who just finished repairing their homes and are getting a life back to normal, this must be a heavy burden. So today our thoughts are with them, our prayers go out to them, and our country must do all we can to help them recover."
More on GlobalPost: Isaac: Evacuations ordered on Louisiana-Mississippi border
The Obama administration has sought to show its preparedness in dealing with Isaac after the Bush administration faced heavy criticism for its response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Reuters noted. Obama mentioned the hurricane in his campaign remarks this week, noted Reuters, saying he had been in touch with several federal agencies.