President Obama visited New Orleans yesterday for the first time since he was elected, fulfilling a campaign promise he'd made as a candidate to see the city's recovery firsthand. Some locals were frustrated, however, that the president stayed for only four hours. We spoke yesterday with Bill Barrow, staff reporter for the Times Picayune, and invited him back this morning to discuss what the president managed to do in those four hours. We also speak with with Anne Milling, founder of Women of the Storm, a nonpartisan advocacy group focused on Katrina recovery, and Nolan Rollins, president & CEO of the Urban League of Greater New Orleans.
President Obama heads to New Orleans tomorrow — his first trip to the Big Easy since becoming president. His plans include a visit to a charter school and holding a town hall meeting while he’s there. But some residents think the four hours he’s spending in their city is too short a time to hear the problems facing the city. Today we ask some New Orleans locals what they want the president to address. We hear from Clarence White, a social worker with Unity Welcome Home, a homelessness outreach organization; Diana Pinckley, with Woman of the Storm, a coastal rebuilding group; Eric Jensen, director of youth engagement for the Afterschool Partnership; and Bill Barrow, staff reporter for The Times-Picayune.