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White House says energy bill the top legislative priority this summer
Passing an energy bill will be President Barack Obama's top legislative
priority this summer, White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton
said Wednesday.
The president's main focus will shift to
working toward a comprehensive energy bill once the Congress finishes
up work on Wall Street reform, a process that is expected to conclude
this month.
"After we get through that, yes," Burton added.
Obama
underscored the need for energy legislation Tuesday night during his Oval
Office address, saying he's open to all approaches that would help
transition the U.S. toward using renewable, clean energy sources.
"So
I’m happy to look at other ideas and approaches from either party -– as
long they seriously tackle our addiction to fossil fuels," Obama said.
"But the one approach I will not accept is inaction."
The House
passed a climate change bill a year ago, and senators have been put on
notice to expect to focus on energy legislation this summer. But even
Democrats in the majority have had trouble agreeing on what that bill
should look like — namely whether or not it should include measures to
rein in climate change, or stay focused on supporting renewable energy
and adding regulations to prevent the kinds of accidents that resulted
in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The focus on energy marks
something of a pivot in the administration's strategy for the summer,
though. In April, Obama told Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.), with whom he meets
Wednesday in the Oval Office, that immigration reform legislation was "coming down the pike."
The
focus on energy also adds to a busy summer schedule for lawmakers, who
want to pass more long-term extensions to federal benefits programs and
the Disclose Act campaign finance reform bill and, in the Senate, work
to confirm Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. All that
action comes against the backdrop of this November's midterm elections
in Congress, in which Republicans hope to pick up a number of Democratic
seats, maybe enough to take over one or both houses.
Cross-posted to the Blog Briefing Room.
