http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/04/25/bush.energy/index.html
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Pressured by looming midterm elections, sinking poll numbers and angry consumers, President Bush is expected to outline a four-point plan on Tuesday aimed at fighting rising gasoline prices.
The speech, set for 10:05 a.m. ET in Washington, comes after Bush ordered a federal investigation into possible cheating or illegal manipulation in the gasoline markets, said White House press secretary Scott McClellan.
"I think you'll hear the president say very clearly that he will not tolerate price gouging," McClellan said.
On the eve of the nation's busiest driving season, American consumers are paying a national average of $2.91 per gallon for regular self-serve, according to the Lundberg Survey of 7,000 gasoline stations this month. (Watch why some pumps shut down as prices go up -- 2:51)
"The president will talk about why gas prices are high," McClellan said. "He will talk about how global demand for energy is really rising faster than the global supply, because of countries like China and India, and he'll talk about how gasoline demand is only projected to increase this summer, and experts are projecting that gas prices will remain high through the summer."
U.S. oil companies reported record profits in 2005, led by Exxon Mobil, which said it made $36.1 billion -- the biggest annual profit on record for a U.S. company.
"The president is going to make very clear .. that energy companies should reinvest those profits that they're making back into new technologies and alternative sources of energy," he said.
Bush's presidential approval ratings have sunk to a personal low, with only 32 percent of respondents to a new CNN poll saying they approve of the way he is handling his job. (Full story)
McClellan detailed Bush's four-point plan:
# To make sure that consumers and taxpayers are treated fairly
# To promote greater fuel efficiency
# To boost U.S. gasoline supply
# To invest aggressively in gasoline alternatives.
Bush has asked the departments of Energy and Justice to begin the inquiries into possible gouging.
Members of the GOP-controlled Congress are concerned that rising gasoline prices could threaten their success in the November elections.
In a letter released on Monday, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee, urged Bush to order a federal probe into possible gasoline price gouging or market speculation.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-California, dismissed Hastert's and Frist's letter as "empty rhetoric." (Full story)
McClellan said the Bush administration shares "a commitment with congressional leaders to make sure that we're acting to ensure that there is no price gouging."
U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and the Federal Trade Commission sent a letter Tuesday to all 50 state attorneys general, McClellan said, who have primary authority over price gouging issues. The letter will ask them to monitor the issue, he said, and to offer federal help.
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Pressured by looming midterm elections, sinking poll numbers and angry consumers, President Bush is expected to outline a four-point plan on Tuesday aimed at fighting rising gasoline prices.
The speech, set for 10:05 a.m. ET in Washington, comes after Bush ordered a federal investigation into possible cheating or illegal manipulation in the gasoline markets, said White House press secretary Scott McClellan.
"I think you'll hear the president say very clearly that he will not tolerate price gouging," McClellan said.
On the eve of the nation's busiest driving season, American consumers are paying a national average of $2.91 per gallon for regular self-serve, according to the Lundberg Survey of 7,000 gasoline stations this month. (Watch why some pumps shut down as prices go up -- 2:51)
"The president will talk about why gas prices are high," McClellan said. "He will talk about how global demand for energy is really rising faster than the global supply, because of countries like China and India, and he'll talk about how gasoline demand is only projected to increase this summer, and experts are projecting that gas prices will remain high through the summer."
U.S. oil companies reported record profits in 2005, led by Exxon Mobil, which said it made $36.1 billion -- the biggest annual profit on record for a U.S. company.
"The president is going to make very clear .. that energy companies should reinvest those profits that they're making back into new technologies and alternative sources of energy," he said.
Bush's presidential approval ratings have sunk to a personal low, with only 32 percent of respondents to a new CNN poll saying they approve of the way he is handling his job. (Full story)
McClellan detailed Bush's four-point plan:
# To make sure that consumers and taxpayers are treated fairly
# To promote greater fuel efficiency
# To boost U.S. gasoline supply
# To invest aggressively in gasoline alternatives.
Bush has asked the departments of Energy and Justice to begin the inquiries into possible gouging.
Members of the GOP-controlled Congress are concerned that rising gasoline prices could threaten their success in the November elections.
In a letter released on Monday, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee, urged Bush to order a federal probe into possible gasoline price gouging or market speculation.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-California, dismissed Hastert's and Frist's letter as "empty rhetoric." (Full story)
McClellan said the Bush administration shares "a commitment with congressional leaders to make sure that we're acting to ensure that there is no price gouging."
U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and the Federal Trade Commission sent a letter Tuesday to all 50 state attorneys general, McClellan said, who have primary authority over price gouging issues. The letter will ask them to monitor the issue, he said, and to offer federal help.
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