Detroit Free Press

President Obama drank from a glass of what he said was filtered Flint water at a Flint food bank Wednesday as he vouched for the safety of certified filters and encouraged most city residents to start drinking filtered water instead of bottled water.



"If you're using a filter ... then Flint water at this point is drinkable," Obama said after taking a drink of filtered water.

The only exception is pregnant women and children under 6, who should continue to use bottled water "out of an abundance of caution," he said.

That doesn't mean Flint's lead service lines don't need to be replaced, Obama said, but that could take two years or even longer.

Obama's words and action of drinking the Flint water were reminiscent of a media event Gov. Rick Snyder held about three weeks ago in which he promised to drink filtered Flint water for 30 days, except when traveling.