Obama wants deal on BP damages fund

President Barack Obama hopes to have a deal with BP by Wednesday on an escrow
account to fund damages claims from the Gulf oil spill.

During his fourth visit to the Gulf Coast in a matter of
weeks on Monday, Obama said pressuring BP to compensate losses would be one of
his main topics when he meets with company executives on Wednesday. That
meeting will come one day after an Oval Office address to the nation about the
disaster.

{mosads}“We have begun preliminary conversations about how do we structure a mechanism so that the legit claims that are going to be presented not just tomorrow, not just next week but over the coming months are dealt with justly, fairly, promptly,” Obama said on Monday.

“So far we’ve had a constructive conversation. And my hope is that by the time the chairman and I meet on Wednesday we’ve made sufficient progress that we can start actually seeing the structure that would be in place.”

The fund is expected to run to $20 billion, and BP, under
tremendous pressure from Obama and Congress, is reportedly considering
suspending its dividend payments to help pay for it. The oil company to date
said it has spent $1.6 billion on the spill, the worst environmental disaster
in U.S. history.

Claims for damages are a small portion of that figure so
far. BP on Monday said more than 51,000 claims have been filed and more than
$62 million has been paid to coastal businesses and individuals.

White House spokesman Bill Burton said a third party would
handle the escrow account, and the administration is confident it has the
“legal authority” to press BP to comply. BP has said it will pay for all
legitimate claims, but has stopped short of agreeing to pay damages for workers
for other oil rig companies out of work because of the administration’s
temporary ban on deepwater drilling in the Gulf.

Burton said BP has given no indication that it would put up a legal fight to
keep from being forced to fill the account, even as speculators question whether
BP can continue to pay out all claims without claiming bankruptcy.

“We’re confident that we have the legal authority to compel BP to make sure
that the folks that they have affected here are made whole,” Burton said. “And
we’re also confident that we’re going to be able to move forward on that. The signs from BP aren’t that there is going to be a protracted legal battle
over this or anything like that.”

Details of who would manage the fund remain unclear. Kenneth Feinberg, the administration’s “pay czar,” handled compensation claims for victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. He did not respond to an e-mailed question about whether he’d been approached to work on claims related to the Gulf oil spill.



Obama toured areas in Mississippi and Alabama on Monday, marking
his fourth trip to the Gulf since the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill
almost two months ago. He is spending the night in Pensacola, Fla.



The president met with governors and officials from the
region and had a seafood lunch at a small business already feeling the economic
crunch from the prolonged spill.

After lunch, Obama said he would work with small-businesses
“governors and mayors to make sure that they are made whole as a consequence of
this crisis.” 

The tour, complete with a briefing from National Incident Commander Adm. Thad
Allen, comes before Obama returns to Washington on Tuesday for his first
primetime address from the Oval Office.

Burton said Obama made the decision to address the nation from the Oval Office,
and that the president will talk about the steps taken in the Gulf and workers’
safety.

His Oval Office address will begin at 8 p.m. Tuesday and
will be carried live by the major networks.

Burton said the president will “make sure that the American people know
that we’re doing everything that we can, that we’re monitoring in each and
every place possible to ensure that folks are made whole, that the American
people are kept safe.”

“What we’re seeing in the Gulf is a catastrophe the likes of which our country
has never seen before, so the response has been enormous, the assets and the
full power of the federal government has been brought to bear here, and so
talking directly with the American people about what we’re doing to address
this crisis and what we’re going to be doing moving forward is very important
to the president right now,” Burton said.

Obama is also expected to use the speech to renew his call
for sweeping energy legislation, including measures to combat climate change.

This story was updated at 6:06 p.m.