In a speech Tuesday, President Bush aimed to pacify Americans’ concerns about skyrocketing fuel and food prices with the assurance that it’s all Congress’ fault. Bush advocated tackling energy prices by throwing environmental protection to the winds (in not quite those words), urging Congress to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling and rah-rah-ing new coal and nuclear power plants. Bush also expressed openness, though not support, to a summer-long gas-tax suspension, an idea backed by presidential contenders John McCain and Hillary Clinton but not Barack Obama.
