Obama Cancels Some Campaigning to Monitor Storms

ABC OTUS News

The White House has announced President Obama is cancelling some of his campaign travel Monday as Hurricane Sandy is expected to veer on to the East Coast. The president is getting out of Washington, D.C., Sunday, earlier than planned, to beat the disruptions expected in air travel. He is scheduled to speak at rallies in Orlando, Florida, and Youngstown, Ohio, two places outside the region braced for the impact. The White House says a Monday evening rally in Northern Virginia near Dulles airport is being cancelled. That area is expecting high winds and heavy rains. The President has also dropped Tuesday morning travel to Colorado Springs. Spokesmen for the White House and for the Obama campaign say campaigning is appropriate despite the approaching storm, but they said his roles as president and as commander in chief come first. President Obama has instructed federal emergency planners to offer assistance to states and local governments, but the White House emphasizes that during natural disasters, all decisions about preparedness and evacuations are made by local officials, not by the federal government.