00:00 From wildfires and hurricanes to
00:01 mass shootings and terrorist attacks,
00:03 Americans have come to expect a
00:05 presidential visit when disaster
00:06 strikes and look back through.
00:08 History shows it's a tradition
00:09 that's been building for decades.
00:11 The president and the First Lady will
00:13 be traveling to Hawaii on Monday.
00:15 The purpose of a presidential
00:17 visit is typically two sided.
00:18 Victims of a disaster are looking
00:20 for comfort and empathy,
00:22 but they also want to know what
00:24 the government is doing to help.
00:26 Whether it's, you know,
00:27 a flood or an earthquake or
00:29 these terrible fires that happened in Hawaii.
00:31 It always involves the government.
00:33 It always involves federal aid
00:35 because very often the states
00:37 can't handle it themselves.
00:38 The timing of a visit can make a big
00:41 difference. You can't wait too long.
00:43 It looks like you don't care.
00:45 You're not paying attention,
00:46 but if you get in there right away,
00:49 you're going to disrupt things.
00:51 President speaking at the site of
00:53 tragedy goes all the way back to
00:55 President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg
00:57 address, but as society and technology
00:59 changed, so did the expectations.
01:01 Communication became easier.
01:02 Travel became faster and television
01:03 put these moments on screen.
01:05 I think Lyndon Johnson is one of
01:07 the first presidents to go to a
01:10 disaster area after a hurricane so
01:12 that we now expect our presidents
01:14 to do that. Presidential visits
01:15 can be turning points and an
01:18 administration take President Bill
01:19 Clinton after the Oklahoma City bombing
01:21 or President George W Bush at Ground Zero.
01:24 Disaster gives political leaders a
01:26 chance to put partisanship aside.
01:27 When Superstorm Sandy ravages the East Coast,
01:30 particularly the New Jersey area.
01:32 What was really good for Obama and for
01:35 Chris Christie, the Republican governor
01:37 of New Jersey, was that the two came
01:40 together, but a misstep can haunt a
01:43 presidency long after the administration
01:45 is over. Probably better not to go at
01:48 all than to make a halfway measure,
01:51 which is what George W Bush did in
01:54 flying over in Air Force One.
01:57 Flying over the ravages of Katrina
01:59 and that haunted him for the rest
02:02 of his presidency. The impact
02:03 of a presidential visit extends
02:05 internationally as well.
02:07 It can be good for US president or
02:09 even former president to visit
02:11 another country when tragedy strikes
02:13 there in order to demonstrate US
02:15 leadership among the free world.
02:17 Stephanie Lieberman,
02:18 Scripps News, Washington.
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