President Obama, let’s end the oli spill charade

As oil continues to spill into the Gulf of Mexico and now threatens the Florida Panhandle, the blame game has begun. Last week, President Obama, who is finally starting to show some backbone after taking heat from both sides, angrily pointed his finger at Republicans for dropping the ball on regulations and failing to give proper oversight to the oil industry.

Now, Attorney General Eric Holder, a constant source of agita for me, has announced plans for a criminal investigation into the events leading up to the oil rig’s explosion.

Ironically, the investigation would come at a time when the Obama administration is itself under intense scrutiny for offering two Senate candidates in the middle of heated primaries against incumbent Democrats positions in the White House if they dropped their bids.

Lately, it seems like the president is always on the defensive, facing controversy at every turn. This raises the question, Why is he allowing his administration to become involved in political fights when, clearly, there are other issues, like the oil spill and distress overseas, that deserve his undivided attention?

Obama has sent BP a $69 million bill for spill cleanup to cover the government’s costs thus far. While it’s possible to quantify the costs of cleanup and even lost business, you can’t put a price tag on the 11 lives lost or the unfathomable environmental damage.

As of now, Holder has referred only to possible criminal violations, but has made no specific charges. If there’s the possibility that BP or the other parties involved — Transocean (the owner of the rig) and Halliburton (which made the cement seal that leaked) — avoided steps that could have prevented the accident, then it seems to me that even the threat of criminal charges is appropriate.