Baton Rouge Advocate
By Gerard Shields
February 7, 2010

Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Cassidy of Baton Rouge found himself on a trip to the Dominican Republic last week to monitor the rescue efforts on the border of Haiti. …

“I just had to see what was happening,” Cassidy said. “There are certain questions you know to ask as a physician.”

Cassidy came away impressed with how the rescue teams were handling injuries in conditions he likened to a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital.

“You take the poorest place in the United States and it’s going to be wealthier than this place,” Cassidy said.

As a congressman, Cassidy was able to set up meetings with the United States Agency for International Development and tap into its  resources for doctors working at the Good Samaritan Hospital, where earthquake victims were being brought.

“It’s my responsibility,” Cassidy said. “In this job, I’m expected to do something like this.”

Cassidy walked away impressed by the American rescue effort.

“What I saw was a snapshot,” Cassidy said. “It continues to be awe-inspiring that Americans — and particularly people in Louisiana — are responding.” … Cassidy said the rescue efforts could bring the United States and the island nation closer together politically. “The compassionate thing to do is help them,” Cassidy said. “But it is (also) the wise thing to do for foreign policy.” …