Newark, NJ – Keeping tabs on a Gulf Coast storm, President Barack Obama focused on flood damage in New Jersey during a trip Sunday to see firsthand the destruction from Hurricane Irene.
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Obama took a helicopter flight from Newark to Fairfield, a suburb about 10 miles west of Paterson, the state’s third-largest city where the Passaic River overflowed.
His motorcade brought him to a residential area in nearby Wayne that was hit hard by the flooding of the Pompton River, which flows into the Passaic. Both rivers experienced record flood levels after the storm.
“Everybody’s going to be working hard to help you recover,” Obama told one woman as he made his way down Fayette Avenue. Neighbors watched as the president walked past flooded homes, the garage doors open. Piles of water-damaged debris littered the curb.
Obama then made his way to Paterson, a city chosen because “this was a place he can visit that had particularly severe impacts,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
The Passaic River swept through the once-booming factory town of 150,000, flooding the downtown area and forcing hundreds to evacuate.
Joining Obama were Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency; Lisa Jackson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; and members of the state’s congressional delegation.
Republican Gov. Chris Christie, who greeted Obama upon his arrival in Newark, has offered the Democratic president praise for his response to Irene.
“When disaster strikes, Americans suffer, not Democrats, not independents, not Republicans,” Carney told reporters aboard Air Force One. “Americans suffer, and then we come together and put politics aside to make sure that those Americans get the assistance that they need.”
Federal officials were monitoring Tropical Storm Lee, which was dumping torrential rains across the Louisiana and Mississippi coasts. That area is still recovering six years after Hurricane Katrina.
Carney said the administration is concerned about what “has been and will be a significant amount of rainfall.”
My Gosh, Christie needs to lose some weight
I agree with #1 . Christie appears to weigh twice as much as Pres. Obama!
Is he gone yet?
looking for votes in all the wrong places
What a sad image of our governor. Our leaders are supposed to be role models and yet he is morbidly obese. Please Mr. Governor. Give up the soda and juice. Drink water, eat lots of green vegetables, berries (no apples, peaches and other high sugar fruits), eat chicken, meat and fish. You will lose 150 pounds in 6 months and look like a healthy human being again.
Look at Obama’s face in that picture. It says it all.
People, what do you care how our governor looks?
As long as he does a good job – he is a good governor, if not – he is not.
He is not your trainer in a gym.
Mr Governor, don’t pay attantion to all the silly coments, just do a job, don’t let homosexuals to be leagal in our state and help our state financally.
And the people will remember as a good governor!
Good luck!
He knows he’s obese and does nothing about it. Wonder if he is depressed? He has all the money he needs to hire a chef, hire a trainer and have gym equipment in his house…yet he refuses. Walking time bomb.
To the “smart Alek”
#15 Adam Swey
You should learn some geography
Albany is NY
And our governor is in NJ, and he promised that as long as he is a governor – gays are not going to be legal in NJ (not like by you in NY)
I guess all you know is few blocks around your house in NY
And maybe few more words to spell
Good luck on you georaphy test!