Michelle Obama to Visit Gulf Oil Spill Region

Michelle Obama will be heading to Panama City Beach, Fla., on Monday afternoon to see the catastrophic impact of the Gulf oil spill. Mrs. Obama will get a briefing from local officials and then speak at a community event.

The first lady's travel plans usually are announced through her East Wing operation, but in a rare move, the West Wing jumped the gun when White House press secretary Robert Gibbs offered up the news at Wednesday's regular briefing when asked when President Obama would next "publicly address" the oil spill.

"We have talked . . . about the next time that the president will go. I don't have a date. But I think it will be in the next few weeks. I know the first lady is making a trip down there soon and the vice president will return again," Gibbs said.

Mrs. Obama's first visit to a disaster area came in April, when she flew to Haiti (while en route to Mexico City) to see the devastation and rebuilding in the wake of the horrific Jan. 12 earthquake.