The Hill News

A Democratic senator touring hurricane damage in Vermont on Monday credited President Obama with a successful response to the disaster.

"Glad Pres. acted quickly on VT disaster declaration," Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) tweeted.

Obama declared emergencies in New York, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Virginia last week ahead of Hurricane Irene's expected landfall. The federal declaration allowed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to mobilize resources and predeploy response teams to areas likely to be affected by the storm.

Governors and lawmakers who represent portions of the East coast affected by Hurricane Irene over the weekend tweeted their perspective of the damage Monday, many of them posting an aerial view from helic! opter tours of their districts while others met roadblocks along the way.

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