Obamas plan

[MOEstradamus]

President Obama will detail plans for dealing with the worst oil spill in U.S. history and call for shifting to a clean energy economy when he makes his first Oval Office address to the nation on Tuesday night.

The 18-minute speech being televised nationally will describe what happened in the April 20th explosion and fire on a Gulf of Mexico oil rig that led to the gushing well at the ocean's bottom, according to two senior administration officials who briefed reporters on condition of not being identified by name.

Obama will emphasize the government's containment strategy in conjunction with oil giant BP, which owns the broken well, to capture as much as 90 percent of the leaking oil in coming weeks as workers dig relief wells intended to halt the spill sometime in August, the senior administration officials said.

In addition, Obama will note the unprecedented federal response to the oil disaster and cite BP's responsibility to clean up the worst environmental catastrophe in U.S. history and pay all damages, the officials said.
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RELATED TOPICS

* Gulf Coast Oil Spill
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However, the officials conceded that negotiations with BP on a BP-funded escrow account to pay for damages are continuing. They said a main sticking point was whether workers who lose their jobs due to the government's six-month moratorium on offshore drilling would be eligible to file damage claims.

Obama meets with top BP officials on Wednesday and will push for creation of the escrow account to be administered by an independent third party, according to the officials, who refused to provide any further details.

In Tuesday night's speech, Obama also will talk about the importance of ending the nation's reliance on fossil fuels and call for unified support for clean energy legislation, noting the House has passed a bill while the Senate has a proposal to consider, the senior administration officials said.

Earlier, Obama named Michael Bromwich to direct the federal government's efforts to regulate offshore oil drilling. Bromwich, who was a Justice Department inspector general in the Clinton administration, will oversee the reorganized agencies that formerly comprised the Minerals Management Service in the Department of Interior.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told ABC News on Tuesday morning that Obama's goal is to "restore the Gulf, not just the way it was the day the rig exploded, but years ago."

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Presidents have tackled a variety of topics in Oval Office speeches -- from the Challenger disaster in 1986 to the attacks of September 11, 2001. Energy was last a topic in 1979, when Jimmy Carter spoke about America's inability to overcome the energy crisis.

While Obama has had to deal with major issues including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and a major economic downturn, he has never spoken to the public from the Oval Office until now.