THE
WHITE HOUSE
Office
of the Press Secretary
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
May 29, 2010
Statement
by the President on the Latest Efforts to Contain the BP Oil
Spill
Today,
I’ve spoken with National Incident Commander Admiral Thad
Allen, as well as Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Interior
Secretary Ken Salazar, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, and
senior White House advisors John Brennan and Carol Browner
regarding the ongoing efforts to stop the BP oil spill.
From the beginning, our concern has been that the surest way to
stop the flow of oil – the drilling of relief wells – would
take several months to complete. So engineers and experts
have explored a variety of alternatives to stop the leak now.
They had hoped that the top kill approach attempted this week
would halt the flow of oil and gas currently escaping from the
seafloor. But while we initially received optimistic
reports about the procedure, it is now clear that it has not
worked. Rear Admiral Mary Landry today directed BP to
launch a new procedure whereby the riser pipe will be cut and a
containment structure fitted over the leak.
This
approach is not without risk and has never been attempted before
at this depth. That is why it was not activated until other
methods had been exhausted. It will be difficult and will
take several days. It is also important to note that while
we were hopeful that the top kill would succeed, we were also
mindful that there was a significant chance it would not.
And we will continue to pursue any and all responsible means of
stopping this leak until the completion of the two relief wells
currently being drilled.
As I said
yesterday, every day that this leak continues is an assault on
the people of the Gulf Coast region, their livelihoods, and the
natural bounty that belongs to all of us. It is as
enraging as it is heartbreaking, and we will not relent until
this leak is contained, until the waters and shores are cleaned
up, and until the people unjustly victimized by this manmade
disaster are made whole.
THE
WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
EMBARGOED
UNTIL 6:00 AM ET, SATURDAY, May 22, 2010
WEEKLY
ADDRESS: President Obama Establishes Bipartisan National
Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore
Drilling
Names
Former Two-Term Florida Governor and Former Senator Bob Graham
and Former Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
William K. Reilly as Commission Co-Chairs
WASHINGTON
– In this week’s address, President Obama announced that he
has signed an executive order establishing the bipartisan
National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and
Offshore Drilling with former two-term Florida Governor and
former Senator Bob Graham and former Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency William K. Reilly serving as
co-chairs.
The
bipartisan National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon
Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling is tasked with providing
recommendations on how we can prevent – and mitigate the
impact of – any future spills that result from offshore
drilling.
·
The commission will be focused on the necessary
environmental and safety precautions we must build into our
regulatory framework in order to ensure an accident like this
never happens again, taking into account the other
investigations concerning the causes of the spill.
·
The commission will have bipartisan co-chairs with
a total membership of seven people. Membership will include
broad and diverse representation of individuals with relevant
expertise. No sitting government employees or elected officials
will sit on the commission.
·
The Commission’s work will be transparent and
subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The
Commission will issue a report within six months of having been
convened.
President
Obama named the following individuals as Co-Chairs of National
Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore
Drilling:
Senator
Bob Graham is the former two–term governor of Florida and
served for 18 years in the United States Senate. Senator Graham
is recognized for his leadership on issues ranging from
healthcare and environmental preservation to his ten years of
service on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence —
including eighteen months as chairman in 2001–2002. After
retiring from public life in January 2005, Senator Graham served
for a year as a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of
Government. From May 2008 to February 2010, he served as
Chairman of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass
Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism whose mandate was to
build on the work of the 9/11 Commission. Senator Graham was
also appointed to serve as a Commissioner on the Financial
Crisis Inquiry Commission, established by Congress to examine
the global and domestic causes of the recent financial crisis.
The Commission will provide its findings and conclusions in a
final report due to Congress on December 15, 2010. He also
serves as a member of the CIA External Advisory Board and the
chair of the Board of Overseers of the Graham Center for Public
Service at the University of Florida. Senator Graham has been
recognized by national and Florida organizations for his public
service including The Woodrow Wilson Institute award for Public
Service, The National Park Trust Public Service award and The
Everglades Coalition Hall of Fame. Senator Graham earned a B.A.
in Political Science from the University of Florida and an LLB
from Harvard Law School. He is the recipient of an honorary
doctorate of public service from his alma mater, the University
of Florida, and honorary doctorates from Pomona College and Nova
Southeastern University.
William K.
Reilly is a Founding Partner of Aqua International Partners,
LP, a private equity fund dedicated to investing in companies
engaged in water and renewable energy, and a Senior Advisor to
TPG Capital, LP, an international investment partnership. Mr.
Reilly served as the first Payne Visiting Professor at Stanford
University (1993-1994), Administrator of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (1989-1993), president of the World Wildlife
Fund (1985-1989), president of The Conservation Foundation
(1973-1989), and director of the Rockefeller Task Force on Land
Use and Urban Growth from (1972-1973). He also served as
the head of the U.S. delegation to the United Nations Earth
Summit at Rio in 1992. Mr. Reilly is Chairman Emeritus of
the Board of the World Wildlife Fund, Co-Chair of the National
Commission on Energy Policy, Chairman of the Board of the
ClimateWorks Foundation, Chairman of the Advisory Board for the
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke
University, and a Director of the Packard Foundation and the
National Geographic Society and a member of Gov.
Schwarzenegger’s Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force. He also
serves on the Board of Directors of DuPont, ConocoPhillips,
Royal Caribbean International and Energy Future Holdings, for
which he serves as Chairman of the Sustainable Energy Advisory
Board. In 2007 Mr. Reilly was elected to the American
Academy of Arts and Sciences. He holds a B.A. degree from Yale,
J.D. from Harvard and M.S. in Urban Planning from Columbia
University.
THE
WHITE HOUSE
Office
of the Press Secretary
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
May 18, 2010
Statement
by President Obama on Oil Liability
"I am
disappointed that an effort to ensure that oil companies pay
fully for disasters they cause has stalled in the United States
Senate on a partisan basis. This maneuver threatens to
leave taxpayers, rather than the oil companies, on the hook for
future disasters like the BP oil spill. I urge the Senate
Republicans to stop playing special interest politics and join
in a bipartisan effort to protect taxpayers and demand
accountability from the oil companies.”
THE
WHITE HOUSE
Office
of the Press Secretary
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
May 12, 2010
Statement
by President Obama on the American
Clean Energy and Security Act
I applaud
Senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman for their tireless work in
drafting this important legislation. This legislation will
put America on the path to a clean energy economy that will
create American jobs building the solar panels, wind blades and
the car batteries of the future. It will strengthen
our national security by beginning to break our dependence on
foreign oil. And it will protect our environment for our
children and grandchildren.
Americans
know what's at stake by continuing our dependence on fossil
fuels. But the challenges we face -- underscored by the immense
tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico -- are reason to redouble our
efforts to reform our nation's energy policies. For too
long, Washington has kicked this challenge to the next
generation. This time, the status quo is no longer
acceptable to Americans. Now is the time for America to
take control of our energy future and jumpstart American
innovation in clean energy technology that will allow us to
create jobs, compete, and win in the global economy.
The House
of Representatives has already taken historic action with
passage of the American Clean Energy and Security Act. I look
forward to engaging with Senators from both sides of the aisle
and ultimately passing a bill this year.
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