{"id":937,"date":"2010-06-02T19:05:27","date_gmt":"2010-06-02T19:05:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/2010\/06\/02\/the-white-house-remarks-by-president-after-meeting-with-bp-oil-spill-commission-co-chairs\/"},"modified":"2010-06-02T19:05:27","modified_gmt":"2010-06-02T19:05:27","slug":"the-white-house-remarks-by-president-after-meeting-with-bp-oil-spill-commission-co-chairs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/2010\/06\/02\/the-white-house-remarks-by-president-after-meeting-with-bp-oil-spill-commission-co-chairs\/","title":{"rendered":"The White House: Remarks by President after Meeting with BP Oil Spill Commission Co-chairs"},"content":{"rendered":"

http:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/the-press-office\/remarks-president-after-meeting-with-bp-oil-spill-commission-co-chairs<\/a>
\n\u00a0
\nThe White House
\nOffice of the Press Secretary
\nFor Immediate Release
\nJune 01, 2010<\/p>\n

Remarks by the President After Meeting with BP Oil Spill Commission Co-Chairs<\/p>\n

Rose Garden<\/p>\n

11:50 A.M. EDT
\nTHE PRESIDENT:\u00a0 Good morning, everybody.\u00a0 I just met with these gentlemen, former Senator Bob Graham of Florida and former EPA Administrator, Bill Reilly.\u00a0 They will lead the National Commission on the BP oil spill in the Gulf, which is now the greatest environmental disaster of its kind in our history.\u00a0 Their job, along with the other members of the commission, will be to thoroughly examine the spill and its causes, so that we never face such a catastrophe again.
\nAt the same time, we’re continuing our efforts on all fronts to contain the damage from this disaster and extend to the people of the Gulf the help they need to confront this ordeal.\u00a0 We’ve already mounted the largest cleanup effort in the nation’s history, and continue to monitor — minute to minute — the efforts to halt or capture the flow of oil from the wrecked BP well.\u00a0 Until the well is stopped, we’ll multiply our efforts to meet the growing threat and to address the widespread and unbelievably painful losses experienced by the people along the Gulf Coast.\u00a0 What’s being threatened — what’s being lost — isn’t just the source of income, but a way of life; not just fishable waters, but a national treasure.
\nThere are now more than 20,000 men and women in the region working around the clock to contain and clean up the oil.\u00a0 We’ve authorized more than 17,000 National Guard members to respond across four states.\u00a0 More than 1,700 vessels are currently aiding in the response.\u00a0 And we’ll ensure that any and all responsible means of containing this leak are pursued as we await the completion of the two relief wells.\u00a0 I’ve also directed Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Admiral Thad Allen, who is the National Incident Commander, to triple the manpower in those places where oil has hit shore or is within 24 hours of impact.
\nThe economic response continues as well.\u00a0 We’ve ordered BP to pay economic injury claims, and we will make sure they deliver.\u00a0 The Small Business Administration has stepped in to help businesses by approving loans and allowing deferrals of existing loan payments.\u00a0 We’ve stationed doctors and scientists across the region to look out for people’s health and monitor any ill effects felt by cleanup workers and residents.\u00a0 And we will absolutely continue to hold BP and any other responsible parties accountable for financial losses borne by the people in the region.
\nBut our responsibility doesn’t end there.\u00a0 We have an obligation to investigate what went wrong and to determine what reforms are needed so that we never have to experience a crisis like this again.\u00a0 If the laws on our books are insufficient to prevent such a spill, the laws must change.\u00a0 If oversight was inadequate to enforce these laws, oversight has to be reformed.\u00a0 If our laws were broken, leading to this death and destruction, my solemn pledge is that we will bring those responsible to justice on behalf of the victims of this catastrophe and the people of the Gulf region.
\n\u00a0
\nWhen Interior Secretary Ken Salazar took office, for example, he found a Minerals and Management Services agency that had been plagued by corruption for years — corruption that was underscored by a recent Inspector General’s report that uncovered appalling activity that took place before last year.\u00a0 Secretary Salazar immediately took steps to clean up that corruption.\u00a0 But this oil spill has made clear that more reforms are needed.\u00a0 For years, there’s been a far too cozy relationship between oil companies and the agencies that regulate them.\u00a0 That’s why we’ve decided to separate the people who permit offshore leases, who collect revenues, and who regulate the safety of drilling.
\nIn addition, we’ve placed a six-month moratorium on drilling new deepwater oil and gas wells in the Outer Continental Shelf.\u00a0 And now that a 30-day safety and environmental review is complete, we’re making a series of changes.\u00a0 The review recommended aggressive new operating standards and requirements for offshore energy companies, which we will put in place.\u00a0 And I’ve also called on Congress to pass a bill to provide critical resources to respond to this spill and better prepare us for any spills in the future.
\nNow, all that has to do with dealing with the crisis at hand.\u00a0 But it’s critical that we take a comprehensive look at how the oil and gas industry operates and how our government oversees those operations.\u00a0 That’s why I signed an executive order establishing this national commission.\u00a0 And I’m extraordinarily pleased that Bob Graham and Bill Reilly have agreed to be its co-chairs.
\nBob served two terms as Florida’s governor, represented Florida in the Senate for almost two decades.\u00a0 And during that time he earned a reputation as a champion of the environment, leading the most extensive environmental protection effort in the state’s history.\u00a0 Bill is chairman emeritus of the board of the World Wildlife Fund, and is also deeply knowledgeable of the oil and gas industry.\u00a0 He also was EPA Administrator during the first Bush administration, serving during the Exxon Valdez disaster.
\n\u00a0
\nSo I can’t think of two people who will bring greater experience or judgment to this task.\u00a0 I personally want to thank both of them for taking on this arduous assignment — for demonstrating a great sense of duty to this country.
\nVery soon I’ll appoint five other distinguished Americans, including leaders in science and engineering, to join them.\u00a0 And they’ll work alongside other ongoing reviews, including an independent examination by the National Academy of Engineers.\u00a0 And I’ve authorized the commission to hold public hearings and to request information from government, from non-for-profit organizations, and from experts in the oil and gas industry both at home and abroad, as well as from relevant companies — including BP, Transocean, Halliburton, and others.
\nI just said in our meeting:\u00a0 In doing this work, they have my full support to follow the facts wherever they may lead — without fear or favor.\u00a0 And I’m directing them to report back in six months with options for how we can prevent and mitigate the impact of any future spills that result from offshore drilling.\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nAs a result of this disaster, lives have been lost.\u00a0 Businesses have been decimated.\u00a0 Communities that had already known great hardship now face the specter of sudden and painful economic dislocations.\u00a0 Untold damage is being done to the environment — damage that could last for decades.\u00a0 We owe all those who’ve been harmed, as well as future generations, a full and vigorous accounting of the events that led to what has now become the worst oil spill in U.S. history.\u00a0 Only then can we be assured that deepwater drilling can take place safely.\u00a0 Only then can we accept further development of these resources as we transition to a clean energy economy.\u00a0 Only then can we be confident that we’ve done what’s necessary to prevent history from repeating itself.
\nThank you very much, everybody.
\nEND
\n11:57 A.M. EDT<\/p>\n

Special thanks to Richard Charter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

http:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/the-press-office\/remarks-president-after-meeting-with-bp-oil-spill-commission-co-chairs \u00a0 The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release June 01, 2010 Remarks by the President After Meeting with BP Oil Spill Commission Co-Chairs Rose Garden 11:50 A.M. EDT THE PRESIDENT:\u00a0 Good morning, everybody.\u00a0 I just met with these gentlemen, former Senator Bob Graham of Florida and former EPA Administrator, Bill … Continue reading The White House: Remarks by President after Meeting with BP Oil Spill Commission Co-chairs<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=937"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reefrelieffounders.com\/drilling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}