Fulfilling one of his campaign promises, the White House announced yesterday that President Barack Obama will be visiting the Gulf Coast areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, reports the Sun Herald. Details of the October visit have yet to be announced.

Obama has also signed an executive order to extend the term of the federal office coordinating recovery efforts in the region. Originally set to expire today, the president's order adds another six months to the original term of the office, established in November, 2005, the story continues.

The federal government has devoted more than $175 billion to the region since Katrina struck.

Obama marked the hurricane's fourth anniversary last month by pledging to make sure turf wars and red tape don't slow recovery.

In half a year, Obama's team says it has cleared at least 75 projects that were in dispute, including libraries, schools and university buildings. But many communities remain dotted with boarded-up houses and overgrown vacant lots, and hundreds of projects are entangled in the bureaucracy or federal-local disputes over who should pick up the tab.

Previous Comments

ID

152360

Comment

Road trip!

Author

golden eagle

Date

2009-09-30T10:26:02-06:00

ID

152367

Comment

Who cares? :-)

Author

BubbaT

Date

2009-09-30T15:34:56-06:00

ID

152377

Comment

I do.

Author

golden eagle

Date

2009-10-01T07:53:43-06:00

ID

152379

Comment

I do!

Author

lanier77

Date

2009-10-01T08:14:25-06:00

ID

152382

Comment

It now appears as though Obama will not visit Mississippi after all. I'm really disgusted with the media for ignoring the Mississippi side of Katrina. Is there a way this could be changed at this late date?

Author

tombarnes

Date

2009-10-01T10:24:58-06:00

ID

152385

Comment

If that's true, I hate that he won't be coming. And for the record, I care.

Author

2599

Date

2009-10-01T12:59:15-06:00