Romney, Jindal take a tour of Louisiana storm damage

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney detoured through hurricane-damaged Louisiana this afternoon, touring a flooded community and saying he hoped his visit would increase the nation’s awareness of victims’ needs. “I’m here to learn, and obviously to draw some attention to what’s going on here,” Romney told Gov. Bobby Jindal after the two met on a highway in the town of Jean Lafitte in Jefferson Parish. “So that people around the country know that people down here need help.” Jindal reportedly talked about the contributions of the Red Cross, Salvation Army and other organizations, and Romney inquired how many people had been evacuated. “Did the water come from the sky, or the rivers, or the ocean?” Romney is quoted as asking the governor, though an Associated Press story notes reporters could not hear the entire conversation. Romney’s motorcade, consisting of trucks equipped to drive through high water, moved slowly through Jean Lafitte accompanied by National Guard vehicles. The caravan inched through water that at some points was a foot or more deep, submerging gas stations, flooding homes and covering front laws. Residents stood in the water and watched Romney’s motorcade pass. At one point, Romney and Jindal stopped and talked to a man in waders and a straw hat, holding a neon yellow “Mitt Is Our Man” handwritten sign. But again, reporters couldn’t hear what was said. President Barack Obama is scheduled to visit Louisiana on Monday, the White House announced today after Romney’s surprise visit made headlines. The Associated Press has a full account of Romney’s south Louisiana tour today here.