Byron Dorgan: “I want to discuss briefly the President's remarks last evening to the Nation about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico…”

“I want to discuss briefly the President's remarks last evening to the Nation about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the actions that this administration has been doing to address that. I would also like to discuss issues related to BP, the company that leased the area offshore and drilled the exploratory well which exploded in the gulf. First of all, I know there is a great deal of anxiety, nervousness and anger about all this. I understand all that because all of us are frustrated that the oil continues to flow. It is a mile down beneath the surface of the water, which is known as a deepwater well. All of us are frustrated that this spill has not been contained. But the President did not cause that spill, and the President himself cannot fix it. I do know this though. The Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Energy, and many other senior administration officials have brought together the best minds in the world as a team to try to evaluate what kinds of technologies and actions that can be used to fix that leak and stop that gusher.”