But that does not mean the public will forgive the first-term president, who is anxious to avoid comparisons to former President George W. Bush and his government's much-criticized response to Hurricane Katrina.
His political opponents, and even some prominent Democrats, are calling on him to take command of the situation. That kind of rhetoric could hurt his credibility ahead of congressional elections in November, when Democrats are poised to lose seats.
Obama again tried to assuage Gulf residents on Saturday and told them he will keep the heat on BP to repair the damage to their lives and habitat.
"It is as enraging as it is heartbreaking, and we will not relent until this leak is contained, until the waters and shores are cleaned up, and until the people unjustly victimized by this manmade disaster are made whole," Obama said in his statement.
With the leak and the clean-up far from solved, BP now has a new headache: accusations that its 22,000 workers employed in clean-up are not adequately trained and equipped and some of them have been sickened by the oil.
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