Publication Date August 17, 2016 | The Advocate

Our Views: Vacation or not, a hurting Louisiana needs you now, Mr. President

United States
Homes are surrounded by water in the Manchac Harbor subdivision off LA-42. Aerials of severe weather flooding in Ascension Parish on Monday August 15, 2016. Photo: Bill Feig, The Advocate
Homes are surrounded by water in the Manchac Harbor subdivision off LA-42. Aerials of severe weather flooding in Ascension Parish on Monday August 15, 2016. Photo: Bill Feig, The Advocate

Now that the flood waters ravaging Louisiana are receding, it's time for President Barack Obama to visit the most anguished state in the union.

Last week, as torrential rains brought death, destruction and misery to Louisiana, the president continued his vacation at Martha’s Vineyard, a playground for the posh and well-connected.

We’ve seen this story before in Louisiana, and we don’t deserve a sequel. In 2005, a fly-over by a vacationing President George W. Bush became a symbol of official neglect for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The current president was among those making political hay out of Bush’s aloofness