Obama ties oil spill to need for sweeping reforms

President Obama, sounding a note of urgency after another tour of the Gulf region reeling from a gushing oil spill, Tuesday night blamed Washington's "lack of political courage and candor" for an outdated energy policy that he said made the disaster possible.

In the first Oval Office address of his presidency, Obama called on Congress to act swiftly on a sweeping energy and climate change bill along the lines of the legislation already adopted by the House.

He expressed willingness to compromise on the details and said he would welcome input from Republicans who staunchly oppose the House bill.

"But the one approach I will not accept," he declared, "is inaction. The one answer I will not settle for is the idea that this challenge is too big and too difficult to meet."

House Republicans left no doubt that their opposition to the president's energy agenda has not been softened by the current crisis. Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, criticized Obama for trying to "exploit this crisis to impose a job-killing national energy tax."

But Obama insisted in his address that the link between the crisis in the Gulf and the energy legislation is inescapable.

"The tragedy unfolding on our coast is the most painful and powerful reminder yet that the time to embrace a clean energy future is now," he said. "Now is the moment for this generation to embark on a national mission to unleash American innovation and seize control of our own destiny."

The president also looked ahead to his meeting Wednesday with top officials of BP. He said he will inform them that they must set aside in an escrow account "whatever resources are required" to compensate everyone who has been harmed by the spill. "In order to ensure that all legitimate claims are paid out in a fair and timely manner," he said, "the account must and will be administered by an independent third party."

The White House would not say who will appoint this person. A senior official said that announcement has to wait until after the BP meeting.

Boehner has warned the White House that the fund must be used "to help the victims of this disaster and not as a slush fund for trial lawyers or administration officials seeking to paper over their own misguided decisions."

Shortly before the speech, the president announced that former prosecutor and Justice Department inspector general Michael R. Bromwich will take charge of reorganizing the Minerals Management Service, the agency widely faulted for lax oversight of offshore drilling. Bromwich, the White House said, "has a mandate to implement far-reaching change."

The president also announced in the address that Ray Mabus, former Navy secretary and former governor of Mississippi, has been asked to develop a long-term restoration plan for the Gulf Coast.

And Obama promised residents of the region that they will not lose their way of life. "I refuse to let that happen," he said.

He also acknowledged that the six-month moratorium on deep-water drilling that he ordered is causing more anxiety and job loss in the region. But he said he will not relent until the safety of such drilling is assured.