Obama to Speak to Nation on Oil Spill

President Barack Obama arrives in the Rose Garden of the White House Friday.

/ AP Photo/Charles Dharapak

The White House's response to the oil spill in the Gulf has been ramped up in recent weeks, and is only going to get stronger.

As the President prepares for tomorrow's trip to the Gulf region -- his fourth since the spill began in April, and his third in the last four weeks -- it was announced that Mr. Obama will speak to the nation from the Oval Office this Tuesday to talk about the spill and what his administration has done to hold BP accountable.

He will speak from the White House after spending time in Alabama, Mississippi and Florida over Monday and Tuesday. His previous trips to the Gulf had taken Mr. Obama only to Louisiana.

The President is also going to meet with top BP executives this week, including CEO Tony Heyward and Chairman of the Board Carl-Henric Svanberg, at the White House on Wednesday. At the meeting, the President will push for a BP-funded escrow account to handle claims filed by people and businesses in the Gulf area who have lost business (and possibly their entire livelihood) because of the spill.

All of this ramping up on the spill comes during a week where the President was supposed to be out of the country. The President's trip to Indonesia and Australia -- canceled in March to focus on the final push for health care -- was canceled again, as he was supposed to leave today for the week-long two-country visit. It has not been rescheduled.

[NowBeWithThat]

Another speech. Just what America needs in the worst environmental disaster the U.S. has ever known.

Oilbama and his trusty teleprompter never miss a photo op.

BP = Barack's Problem

[pasmalltown]

Has BP done more than "just talk" either? They're the ones that created "the worst environmental disaster the U.S. has ever known" and you completely ignore "Hayworthless' and his empty promises........

[NowBeWithThat]

George Bush is to blame for the Gulf oil disaster. He was at the oil rig the night with a crowbar and wearing a fake mustache.

[ajvw]

how many times will he blame "previous administrations?" my bet is 4.

[pasmalltown]

by alanrobisch June 13, 2010 10:01 PM EDT
"Yup the prevention of the pollution of the coast and the containment of the spill has been handled badly. apprently a little known law that prohibits foreign sailors from doing this work in our coastal waters has not been waived. We have recieved offers from other countries such as the dutch but we have turned them down."
----------------------------
Answer one question for me: Why is it when private industry screws up it's all the gov't's fault, yet when things are going well for private industry, there's too much gov't oversight and control????

[pasmalltown]

by cleantheDCcesspool June 13, 2010 10:36 PM EDT -
It's really kind of simple. You and Alan are suggesting that the current administration is doing nothing (as the critics of Bush said about Katrina). If you and Alan are saying that Obama is mishandling this disaster i.e. "Yup, the prevention of the pollution of the coast and the containment of the spill has been handled badly." Who are you to say that this help would have "made things better"? Is the hole still leaking? Yes. Does this contribute to the problems associated with the cleanup? Yes.

AND my question (which you avoid answering) gets to the root cause behind ANY disaster, past, current or future.... Why is it the gov'ts fault when private industry screws up, yet when profits are to be made, private industry cries "too much gov't intervention"?

[pasmalltown]

by cleantheDCcesspool June 13, 2010 10:36 PM EDT
"And how does it address this issue?.."
-------------------------
The question is posed goes one step beyond "this issue", is relevant to ALL made man disasters and I would hope give you "naysayers of the fed gov't response" pause for thought about what REALLY caused this disaster. Trying to deflect blame on the gov't is what the oil lobby wants(and expects) of the American public......... With Katrina we couldn't really blame Mother Nature, now could we?

But don't worry about answering the question, big business really doesn't want you to....................

[pasmalltown]

by alanrobisch June 13, 2010 1:04 PM EDT
"Bp is a group of people you remember people who as a group provide a service and if they do it well they are rewarded if they do so poorly they fail. Govts are the same...."
-------------------------
Couldn't be further from the truth. Corporations are profit making entities. Our federal government is not......... I get a kick out of conservatives that feel that they can draw an analogy between the two. I can't count the times I've listened to the FOX News pundits in their criticism of Obama say, "Well if he was the CEO of a big corporation and did this or that, he'd be fired."

BP provides a service FOR A PROFIT, when they screw up they should be punished. The federal gov't provides a service with tax dollars and does not make a profit in good times or bad........ Are there abuses of power in both private industry and the federal gov't? Of course there are, but to suggest the corporate world is the SAME as the federal world is not correct and it shouldn't be.....

If the "too big to fail" corporations, Bernie Madoff, Wall Street hanky panky and this oil spill aren't proof positive that big business (with their "profit at any risk" mentality) is out of control then we shouldn't have to worry about "running out of food because the gov't can't provide it". It will be big business that will control the soup lines, not the gov't..........

[pasmalltown]

by cleantheDCcesspool June 13, 2010 10:19 PM EDT -
I was responding to Alanrobisch's comment about corporations and gov't being the SAME, not what you rail on about. If you bothered to read my whole comment you would have realized that abuses of power exist in both private industry and the gov't. The examples of big business abuse I listed are indications that there is a need for more gov't oversight. Answer the question I posed to Alan... and perhaps you'll get a better picture of what I was really trying to say..... Big business in general is not evil, but the profit at any risk mentality is........

[Leaderless]

baack should gotten off your behind at least 50 days ago to find a robust solution to the problem. There are people out there willing to help with equipments and ingenuity and he did nothing.
Instead, barack went on vacation, go to parties, attend plays, watching sports, etc.
And obama have the audacity to blame Bush. He probably gave himself an A+ for his effort.

[nottellin1]

Most of you have a major misconception trying to blame BP's actions on either Bush or Obama, big government or small. BP as in British Petroleum is a British company not US. So small government, de-regulation in the US only effects BP because they trade on the US stock exchange. Duh! On the other hand, Bush and Obama are responsible for the how US responds and in how to protect US citizens, which neither seemed or seem very concerned about in the end.

[wjksea]

I'm not real clear about what you wrote in some parts but private corporations have used national names and symbols for years. It's not called copyright infringement but it is in effect. The US stock exchange is private and has fought government regulation and oversight but still wants to call itself "U.S." The United States Federal Reserve is a consortium of multinational private banks. The "Medicare Advantage" Is a private insurance collusion with a state run plan. A clear copyright infringement on the U.S. taxpayer by a private corporation. On the other hand, private corporations are extremely litigious over copyright infringement.
Corporations are extremely lawyered up.

British petroleum's name change to "bp" recognizes the global economy but it still plays the people on the issue of nationalism. It has the Brits' panties up in a bunch taking offense that the people of the United States are wanting this multinational corporation held accountable though many Brits do have their pensions tied to "bp" ... Did they have a choice in having a more secure guaranteed investment? We almost lost social security to the private sector when a politician on behalf of multinational corporate interests wanted to privatize it.

[wjksea]

jgg000101 June 13, 2010 2:08 PM EDT
nah, they'd wonder why were you driving without adequate collision and liability insurance.
------------------------------

Maybe "bp" should consult its insurance company. Oh, no, that's us, the taxpayer.

[wjksea]

How about those vile catholics in the media and supreme court that makes me proud to say I don't patronize that den of iniquity.

Scalia,
Roberts,
Alito,
McLaughlin of the the McLaughlin group.
Coulter,
Hume,
Hannity,

There are more to the list that take the bread of life into their unclean mouths and scapegoat abortion as the sin of the world.

[wjksea]

I'll bet Hitler would have dumped Eva Braun for Monica Crowley.