Outside the White House around noon eastern time:
President Obama is right to condemn the (in his words) "ridiculous spectacle" of oil company executives playing the blame game even as an untold volume of crude gushes into the Gulf. And it's urgent that the Federal government overhaul the way it regulates the oil industry so that it can actually perform meaningful oversight.
But we must also recognize that oil will never be completely safe and secure; even if there weren't the issue of our reliance on overseas stockpiles of oil, oil is and always will be a dangerous and inefficient fuel -- at least until there's none of it left. We're kidding ourselves if we think we can ever repair all the damaqe this leak is causing, and we're kidding ourselves if we think we'll ever be able to depend on oil without accepting risk.
That's why it's also important that President Obama renewed his call for new energy legislation to develop alternative sources of fuel. If this leak doesn't illustrate why it would be idiotic for us to stay addicted to oil, perhaps nothing will. It's true that President Obama recognizes the reality that our economy is now largely fueled by oil, but his agenda is not to double-down on oil, it's to break us free from it.
As he pushes for new legislation, it would be nice to hear him make this case more forcefully, however. If we're going to get anything done this year, it will probably have to be in the next four months or so, if not sooner. I can't imagine an easier environment in which to make the case for breaking our addiction to oil. This is the time get something done. He should spare no effort, whether it's campaigning around the country or calling a joint session of Congress. We must enact energy reform. And it won't just be good policy. It'll be good politics.