A Democratic lawmaker from Louisiana suggested Tuesday that crimes were likely committed in the run-up to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-La.) said that regulators had acted negligently and possibly criminally in their actions toward a BP-leased oil rig that sunk in late April and led to the massive spill in the Gulf.

Melancon, who is running for Senate this fall, said that testimony before Congress suggested that the Minerals Management Service, the chief regulator for offshore drilling, had waived parts of the National Environmental Policy Act.

It probably won’t affect the odds of a climate bill passing, but this will nonetheless get lots of attention in climate change circles: Former Vice President Al Gore and his wife, Tipper, are separating after 40 years of marriage, according to media reports.

Senators in both parties considered swing votes on climate change legislation are under pressure from a $3 million advertising campaign launched this week.

The television ads press lawmakers in more than a dozen states to end Capitol Hill “bickering” and approve the sweeping climate change and energy bill unveiled last month by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.).

The advertisements stress that the U.S. is losing out to other countries by delaying further investment in green energy jobs. It also warns that delay makes the U.S. continually dependent on foreign oil producers.

A new poll reveals that public backing for expanded offshore oil-and-gas drilling has eroded but retains majority support despite the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday also finds that voters narrowly disapprove of President Barack Obama’s handling of the spill, and that the accident has eroded support for drilling among Democrats far more than Republicans.

Overall, the survey of nearly 2,000 voters — conducted May 19-24 — finds that 53 percent of voters favor drilling in currently protected areas to help curb U.S. reliance on oil imports, while 40 percent oppose it.

BP made an uncommon number of changes to its well plan before the April 20 blast

Federal records show that “Just a week before the Deepwater Horizon exploded, BP PLC asked regulators to approve three successive changes to its oil well over 24 hours,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

The story is one of several recent accounts to reveal that there were signs of trouble apparent before the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig. The story continues:

Over on our main site, Alexander Bolton reveals how the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has laid bare a split among Democrats over how to approach energy and climate legislation.

The event continues a recent escalation in Obama’s public response to the ongoing Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward told reporters Sunday that he was sorry for the massive Gulf oil spill and hopes to have his life back soon.

The Times of London said in a Tuesday story that Hayward, whose clip was played over and over on U.S. cable news outlets Monday, "was facing a groundswell of popular anger after making a new gaffe."

That came when he was asked by reporters about how he would respond to residents of Louisiana.

"The first thing to say is 'I'm sorry,'" Hayward said. "We're sorry for the massive disruption it's caused their lives. There's no one who wants this over more than I do. I would like my life back."

Hayward said the company is trying to contain oil offshore. "As far as I'm concerned, a cup of oil on the beach is a failure," he said.

"What we're not faced with is a complete line of oil coming at us. It's more like guerrilla insurgency, if I can use military jargon," Hayward said. "And what we need to do is have a rapid response capability to get it as we identify it, rather than have it come onto the shore or onto the marsh."