Carobamageddon: President Obama Visits Los Angeles Today

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President Obama is in L.A.

Angelinos love the president, but not the impending worse-than-usual gridlocks.

Carobamageddon is looming in Southern California. Los Angeles commuters are afraid—very afraid. President Obama will start his fund raising tour on Monday in the animal friendly city of West Hollywood. He’ll be visiting many other typically car-impenetrable areas of Los Angeles area on Monday and Tuesday. Angelinos welcome his visit—but not the even more-horrible-than-normal traffic jams during rush hour.

Los Angeles traffic jam from during President Obama's last visit

NBC, Los Angeles, already warned residents: Drivers Beware; President Obama is Coming Back to Town. The last time the president visited L.A., mammoth traffic jams ensued.

Local drivers are praying to the traffic spirits that rush hour will be easier to navigate. During the president’s last visit, thousands of drivers were trapped in traffic—some for as long as four hours. Pedestrians couldn’t even walk down the street when his motorcade passed: the chaos lasted for hours.

L.A. residents shared their experiences: It took me about two hours to get to the 405 only about a mile away. He was driving by some of the streets in my neighborhood and they were all blocked off and all you saw were black Suburbans or GMC’s. They took to the roads and everybody else just had to wait.

The traffic nightmare during the president’s last visit was so bad that L.A. City councilman Bill Rosendahl introduced a motion demanding the LAPD and Department of Transportation to report traffic stoppages and report how drivers would be rerouted during the president’s visit. This time, the council member immediately called the LAPD, the Secret Service, and the White House.

He stated the Secret Service notified the City Council of the route. It is my hope they have learned from previous visits and understand that Angelinos already face gridlock on a daily basis and will not tolerate lengthy delays due to the President’s visit. I think the White House has gotten the message. I think the president is sensitive to it. He does want to win votes, and the best way to win votes is ‘don’t give us anymore gridlock Mr. President’ than we already have.

I don’t think so.

The president chose, once again, chose one of the worst times to travel in some of the most heavily traveled streets in Los Angeles. Worse-than-usual, nightmare traffic jams will almost certainly occur during his rush-hour sojourn. Peter Nichols of melroseaction.com said Sunset and La Cienega Boulevards will be shut down while President Obama attends a fund-raiser at the House of Blues (at 4:30 p.m.), and then the Fig & Olive Restaurant for a $35,000 per plate dinner. Melrose Place and Santa Monica Boulevard may also close.

Nichols stated, The closures are right through the heart of some of the most hellish traffic in the area. This could be a huge disruption, particularly in West Hollywood.

He’s seriously understating the impending Carobamageddon gridlock.

The Los Angeles Times warns commuters that this is the President of the United States, not a freeway construction project, stay off the roads. The secret service might have no qualms treating you like a real plank of wood.

The West Hollywood Sheriff’s office have already cautioned commuters to avoid the Sunset Strip on Monday afternoon from Beverly Hills east to Sweetzer Avenue; Santa Monica Boulevard from Beverly Hills east to La Cienega; and Hollaway and Olive Drives, and Fountain Avenue near La Cienega Boulevard. Other areas subject to possible closure is San Vicente Boulevard near the Blue Whale, between Santa Monica Boulevard and Melrose Avenue between 6 a.m. Monday until Tuesday at noon. The area may serve as a command post.

Three Marine Corps helicopters, including two presidential “Marine One” style choppers, already near the treetops over downtown Santa Monica on Friday. The FAA is closing airspace to most planes within a 30-mile radius of Santa Monica from 9:45 a.m. Monday until 11  a.m. Tuesday.

Speculation is the president will arrive at Santa Monica Airport, transfer from helicopter to limousine, then breeze through the typically nightmarish traffic in West Los Angeles, Westwood (location of UCLA), Beverly Hills, and West Hollywood. During hours of waiting, commuters will get on their cell phones and complain to friends and family, play rap music so loud that the drums shake all the cars within a one-mile radius, or tear their hair out screaming in agony.

That’s not a completely hyperbolic scenario.

The dreaded 405 freeway

The presidential motorcade will avoid the 405, so named because it usually takes four or five hours to get anywhere during the evening rush hour. It won’t matter: most of the commuters on the West Side need to use the same streets as the president’s motorcade to get to the 405.

Suggestion to L.A. commuters: during Carobamageddon, call in sick or take a couple of vacation days on Monday and Tuesday. You can thank Mad Mike’s America after you get over the traffic.


Mad Mike’s America thanks CBS Los Angeles, Channel 2; and NBC, Los Angeles, Channel  and, as always, The Los Angeles Times.


We really, really love you, President Obama, but why do you always travel pick rush hour to travel in Los Angeles?

About Post Author

Dorothy Anderson

I want to know what you think and why, especially if we disagree. Civil discourse is free speech: practice daily. Always question your perspective.
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Anonymous
11 years ago

The photo above has been photoshopped, and not well!! The 405 has 5 lanes of traffic on each side, not 10. Ridiculous! If you’re going to slight LA, do your research and use a legit image. My 6-year old could do a better job with Photoshop.

Reply to  Anonymous
11 years ago

Who said it’s the 405 dude? There’s no caption.

Remington64
12 years ago

I loathe SmellLA! Worse place I’ve ever lived and I don’t plan on going back.

Reply to  Remington64
12 years ago

I’m so glad you left: the more non-native Angelenos the leave, the happier we are. Don’t let the door hit you where the good Lord split you. And good riddance.

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