To the editor:

I read with interest the recent column by Rich Lowry. What caught my eye in his opinion piece was not just an apparent lack of preparation for such an event, but the fact that Mr. Lowry seems to believe that President Trump and his administration should not be blamed in any way for the extensive devastation and heartache we have witnessed this past week.

I daresay most Americans do not blame Mr. Trump for the flood itself, but we (I) do believe that Mr. Trump should share some of the blame for a lack of preparation due to the firings at the National Weather Service since his inauguration. I get that Mr. Trump did not cause the floods, but the firing of officials at the NWS, even just 10%, could have significantly hindered alerts and notifications at the local level in the flooded zones during the event, thereby possibly resulting in many unnecessary and avoidable deaths and injuries.

Additionally, I find it unconscionable that the president of our United States could not find the time to visit the flood-stricken area sooner than this Friday, fully eight days after this tragic event occurred! But he DID find time to go play a round of golf at one of his private clubs a couple of days after the event.

I believe that with leadership goes responsibility!

David Dailey,

Lawrence