Today marks a somber confluence of events: Earth Day, this week’s one year anniversary of the Gulf Oil Spill and skyrocketing fuel costs across the U.S. President Obama announced plans to tackle fuel prices during a speech in Reno, Nev., yesterday:

 

“The Attorney General's putting together a team whose job it will be to root out any cases of fraud or manipulation in the oil markets that might affect gas prices – and that includes the role of traders and speculators. We are going to make sure that no one is taking advantage of the American people for their own short-term gain.”

 

Critics like Rep. John Fleming (R-La.) ‒ a House Tea Party Caucus member ‒ say the administration could take a big step in the right direction by stepping up the number of deepwater drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico:

 

“This Administration says it wants to, ‘safeguard against unlawful consumer harm’ and yet on February 2, 2011, President Obama’s Interior Department was held in contempt of court by Federal District Judge Martin Feldman for deliberately refusing to issue more deepwater drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico affecting thousands of jobs and consumers in my home state of Louisiana. I find the irony too much to pass up commenting on. It’s clear this administration wants to bend reality to reflect its warped view of what America's energy priorities should be,” said Congressman Fleming. 

 

Congressman Fleming added, “It is about time that this administration was held accountable for its deliberate actions to keep energy prices high. Americans know instinctively that the Obama Administration is happy with high gas prices and that this ‘Working Group’ is yet another attempt to shift the blame and change the subject. It’s too bad the media is complicit in this razzle dazzle.”

fleming.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=238127