Rep. Hartzler avoids standing near Obama photo

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- Missouri congresswoman Vicky Hartzler is a frequent critic of President Barack Obama. Her concern apparently also extends to his image.

After a visit Tuesday to the Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital in Columbia, Hartzler was looking for a place to do interviews with reporters.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/1bcCUbB ) that Hartzler asked an aide to move a U.S. flag away from a portrait of Obama -- apparently so that the president's picture wouldn't be in the background of television camera shots.

Hartzler is a Republican who represents the 4th Congressional District in west-central Missouri. She has frequently criticized the Democratic president for his policies on health care, taxes and spending and the federal deficit.

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