Obama to hold press conference Friday

Then-Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. speaks during a news conference at a gas station in Indianapolis, Friday, April 25, 2008.

/ AP

President Obama will hold a press conference at the White House at 11:15 a.m. Eastern Time tomorrow, a senior white house advisor tells CBS News. (Update, March 11 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern: The press conference has now been postponed to 12:30 p.m.)

"The president will hold a news conference at the White House tomorrow to talk about rising energy prices among other issues," the advisor said.

Republicans today criticized the president for his energy policy in the wake of rising gas prices, which have risen amid unrest in the Middle East. House Speaker John Boehner said that "the Obama Administration has consistently blocked American energy production that would lower costs and create new jobs."

Some Democrats, meanwhile, are pushing the president to open the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to increase supply and lower prices.

The White House counters criticism by noting that 2010 saw the largest increase in domestic energy production since 2003. White House press secretary Jay Carney disputed Boehner's comments at his press briefing Thursday, pointing out that the Obama administration has issued 37 new offshore shallow water oil drilling permits since the BP oil spill, as well as one deep water permit. He said the administration is committed to more oil production in addition to pursuing other forms of energy production.

Gas prices are near $4 per gallon in many areas, and the average across the country has gone above $3.50 per gallon. Prices are expected to rise even higher over the summer. Rising gas prices became a major issue during Mr. Obama's presidential campaign, with supporters of the McCain/Palin Republican ticket chanting "drill, baby, drill" at campaign events. 

Other topics likely to come up at the news conference are the situation in Libya, negotiations over funding the government and battles over the rights of unions in Wisconsin and elsewhere.

This will be Mr. Obama's 13th formal, solo White House news conference, CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller reports. The last was on Feb 15th.

[branchltd]

One has to wonder which side the US is on in Libya. Let's look at the key players:

1. Hillary Clinton (call her "Moe"): March 21 1999 Moe calls the president (Bill) and she says "I urged him to bomb [Serbia]." This was 6 years before the UN "Responsibility to Protect (R2P)" was enacted. Now, with the R2P in place Moe says it would be illegal to do the same in Libya. That same bombing was done in Serbia without clear regional support but now Moe says we can't do that in Libya. On top of that Moe's department backs arms embargo of Lybia despite the fact that this same strategy worsened the situation for Kosovo. Who's side is Moe on? You guessed it!

2. General Gates (call him "Larry"): Larry testifes (falsely) to congress that Libya's defenses are greater than Iraq's were. Larry knows that we lost only one plane when Regan took out Libya's defenses and that the age of those defenses are the same as they were then while our planes have improved. Who's side is Larry on? You guessed it!

3. President Obama (call him "Curly"): When the Arab freedom movement starts Curly expresses concern and drags his feet in supporting it (at no military risk). When the murder starts in Lybia Curly again drags his feet on pretenses similar to Moe's. Who's side is Curly on? You guessed it!

I conclude that Moe, Larry and Curly are Quadafi's three stooges.

[busterdawggy]

At least President Obama has the professionalism to talk to the national media. I'm still waiting for Sarah Palin to hold her first news conference, and stop hiding behind Fox, Twitter and Facebook. If she is going to be a national figure, she needs to come out of hiding.

[RobAla]

Last time I checked Sarah Palin was not the President of the United States. In fact, she is no longer even a Governor. Why would she have a need to say anything. If she was plastered all over the news, would you be mad because she was getting so much air time. By the way, I am not someone who believes she should run for President. Leaving a political office during the middle of a term should mark the end of her political career. She would be dumb to announce that, though. She is making a boatload of money by keeping the press interested in her.

[busterdawggy]

She continually makes national news by posting on Facebook and Twitter. She comments repeatedly on Fox about those issues. But she is afraid to take reporters' questions. But she will not speak to the
"mainstream media" - instead denigrates them. That shows no courage at all.

[RobAla]

Are we going to get another lecture on "green energy" - or is he going to open up ANWAR for drilling - or maybe he will open the Gulf for drilling. I won't hold my breath for anything like that. It better not be a speech on using up the nations oil reserves in order to cushion things politically for himself by temporarily lowering the price of oil. Those reserves are meant for real emergencies, not to play politics! He needs to leave his fingers off that oil and allow our US companies to drill.

This man wants to drive up the priced of coal and oil, in order to force the nation on green energy that will NOT MEET THE NATION'S ENERGY NEEDS.

Barack Obama 2008 interview with SF Chronicle went like this:

"What I've said is that we would put a cap and trade system in place that is as aggressive, if not more aggressive, than anybody else's out there.
I was the first to call for a 100% auction on the cap and trade system, which means that every unit of carbon or greenhouse gases emitted would be charged to the polluter. That will create a market in which whatever technologies are out there that are being presented, whatever power plants that are being built, that they would have to meet the rigors of that market and the ratcheted down caps that are being placed, imposed every year.
So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it's just that it will bankrupt them because they're going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that's being emitted.
That will also generate billions of dollars that we can invest in solar, wind, biodiesel and other alternative energy approaches.
The only thing I've said with respect to coal, I haven't been some coal booster. What I have said is that for us to take coal off the table as a (sic) ideological matter as opposed to saying if technology allows us to use coal in a clean way, we should pursue it.
So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can.
It's just that it will bankrupt them."

[forsanity1]

Read the article.

The Gulf of Mexico is open for drilling.

You seem to always have only one take on naything: "Obama is wrong on ...blah, blah, blah". Is it difficult to use your narrow mind to function in daily life?

[rmacgilv]

Another opportunity fo Obama to spin while never really saying or standing for anything.Of course,the press will perform their recurring role as useful idiots.

[forsanity1]

Yes, Fox Cable News will be there.