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Obama visiting Flint for first time since water crisis began

President Barack Obama White House photo
The White House | via Wikimedia | CC BY 2.0

President Barack Obama is set to meet with residents of Flint, Michigan, to hear how they're managing after lead from old pipes tainted their drinking water.

And Obama is bringing a message to Flint on Wednesday: a promise for change.

The White House says Obama wants to use the trip to assure residents that federal help will continue even after the media glare subsides.

Obama declared a state of emergency in mid-January and ordered federal aid to supplement the state and local response.

At that point, the crisis was in full bloom.

It took several months for the nation to focus its attention on the beaten-down city's plight, raising questions about how race and poverty influenced decisions that led to the tainted water and the beleaguered response once problems surfaced.

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