As we inch closer to the November presidential election, Republican candidate Donald Trump will have to appeal to more voters in order to defeat Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton.
One way he has adjusted his campaign to do so has been by acting and speaking more “presidential” — something that hasn’t gone unnoticed by voters or the media.
In fact, a reporter for LifeZette noted that by visiting flood-ravaged Louisiana this week, Trump was “playing the role of president,” especially considering that our actual president has not lifted a finger to help — or even address — the natural disaster victims.
Trump and running mate Gov. Mike Pence landed in Louisiana Friday morning to gain a firsthand understanding of the state’s worst natural disaster since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
WATCH: Trump and Pence disembark from Plane in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to tour flooding. https://t.co/xrSlortUF1
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) August 19, 2016
As soon as the businessman-turned-politician stepped off of the plane, he shook hands with locals who met him on the tarmac.
However, it was his off-camera, behind-the-scenes actions that did an even better job at portraying him as an influential, caring leader.
Trump met privately with local families in the Baton Rouge area who had been impacted by the devastating flood waters.
“Trump is a businessman who knows for sure revitalization efforts,” Sharon Bell, who lost her home in the catastrophe, told LifeZette. “Why not have him visit?”
The GOP candidates also stopped by a Baptist church where a group of volunteers who had been cooking meals for flood victims and helping the elderly gut their homes were meeting.
This outreach to the victims of a natural disaster painted Trump in a light that some voters had never seen before, and it served as a positive contrast to the candidate who has been known to offend even those within his own party with his sometimes-harsh rhetoric.
It also further highlighted the fact that neither President Barack Obama nor Democrat presidential nominee Hillary Clinton had visited the area or met any one of the tens of thousands of people who have been forced out of their homes.
Obama has opted not to disrupt his Martha’s Vineyard golfing vacation, while Clinton has been campaigning and preparing for two fundraisers scheduled to take place over the weekend.
In fact, both Clinton and Obama have said little about the catastrophe and have reportedly been receiving updates about the situation from their aides.
Meanwhile, Trump is in the trenches, meeting with victims, helping volunteers and lending a caring ear to their problems.
Because that’s what a real leader does.
Right on Mr Trump!