San Francisco (Obama.net)-
President Barack Obama sat down to speak with the host of CNN’s “Larry King Live,” Larry King on Thursday. Among the topics discussed, the Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico took center stage.
Obama stressed again the urgency of the situation and the rush to get work done to fix the problems. Among the President’s chief frustrations was that the spill was caused by poor management and could have easily been avoided. Adding onto Obama’s chagrin is the slowness of BP in reacting to the spill and fixing it.
Obama admitted that he is angry with BP and he said, “I would love to just spend a lot of my time venting and yelling at people, but that’s not the job I was hired to do.” The President went on to state that his duty to is solve the problems facing the Mexican Gulf and the surrounding area, especially making sure that the people hurt by the catastrophe can bounce back to a good quality of living. Obama said, “Ultimately, this is about the people down in the Gulf.”
Despite Obama’s taking charge of the situation, he is still holding BP accountable. Obama said that the spill is clearly BP’s fault and it is his job to make sure to make sure that BP will take responsibility for all the damages and pay all of the costs.
Obama made it clear that BP, with their intelligence and expertise, is well equipped to stop the leakage and fix the damage, but the leaking may not end completely any time soon. He added that the August relief wells are the best chance to end the spill.
While he is chastising BP, Obama is still for off shore drilling, so long as “it can be done safely.”
Obama and King also discussed the current immigration concerns of Arizona. Obama said that he’s not supporting the current law instituted by Jan Brewer, the Arizona Governor, which starting in July will allow officers to investigate the residency of any person being questioned for criminal activity or breaking any law. However, Obama said he understands Arizona’s concerns with illegal immigration and the he will work with Brewer to find solutions to the worries.
One of Obama’s current plans is to work with Congress to further secure the border and to make it mandatory for illegal immigrants to pay taxes, learn to speak English, and go for citizenship legally.
The interview also saw the discussion of one lighter topic: the free agency of two-time NBA MVP, LeBron James. Obama previously suggested that James would fit in well with Obama’s hometown teams, the Chicago Bulls. However, on Thursday the President said that he would like to see the twenty-five year old Akron, Ohio native James stay in Cleveland with the Cavaliers.
On the topic of Israel, Obama said that he sees the situation as a sign of deeper urgency towards progressing peace talks in the Middle East.
With all of the challenges Obama has been facing both in the United States and globally, the President still says that his, is “the best job on Earth” and “an extraordinary privilege.” It is obvious that Obama is one of the hardest working President’s that American’s have seen in decades. And Obama sees it as his honor to “serve the American people.”
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