The Republican presidential ticket Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan wasted no time getting back in front of voters.

Romney and Ryan were both scheduled to stop in Richmond, Va., Friday, but Romney decided to visit the hurricane-stricken Gulf Coast instead.

In Lafitte, a fishing village south of New Orleans, Romney saw soaked homes, roads covered with brown water and debris-littered neighborhoods.

"I'm here to learn and obviously to draw some attention to what's going on here," Romney said. "So that people around the country know that people down here need help."

After news of Romney's change in plans, president Obama announced he'll visit New Orleans on Monday.

Meanwhile, Ryan went ahead with plans in Richmond. He continued to hammer the message that President Obama is full of talk with a failed record to show for it.

"I don't want to bore you but it needs to be repeated that if we stay on the same path, we'll get the same result," Ryan said.

"Look at where Pres. Obama has taken our economy: 23 million struggling to find jobs, the poverty rate in America is the worst in this generation, our graduates are either unemployed or in a job they didn't study for," Ryan continued. "The president has put us on a path of decline and doubt."