President Obama Prepares for his Speech

By Travis Williams
President Obama heads down to the Gulf Coast today to address the nation on what exactly is being done with the oil spill, and hopefully outline the steps needed to get out of this horrible mess. Many Americans have questions as to precisely how many barrels of oil are gushing into the ocean, and what will be done to ensure that our fisherman receive not only compensation for their losses in profits, but their lives back.
The Wall Street Journal showed what one White House Senior Administration Official thought the President would highlight in his address from the Oval Office: "The test for him is: Does it reduce America's carbon pollution? Does it set America off on a course of energy independence? Does it meet the objective to see that America is leading in the alternative energy field? Does it lead to the creation of economic growth and jobs? Does it lead to the United States being a leader on alternative energy? Does it help the country wean itself off dependence on foreign oil?" the official said. "Those are the questions the president will ask in evaluating any legislation."
It is now day 57 and the general feeling in the Gulf Coast is somewhere between anger and astonishment with the latest news, coming from CBS, indicating that the oil will flow into the ocean at least until early August. Experts are uncertain as to what another six weeks of oil flow (it could be much longer) would mean for the ocean and its inhabitants. However it doesn’t take an expert to know that doubling the worst environmental disaster the US has ever seen will undoubtedly become a global calamity, with economic, political, and environmental repercussions lasting decades into the future.