President Obama addressed the nation from the Oval Office for the first time during his presidency Monday night to outline the latest efforts to fight the oil spill in the Gulf. Calling it the worst disaster in history, "more like an epidemic," Obama laid out steps for cleaning up and paying for the spill. When he meets with BP Wednesday, the president says he will demand the creation of an fund, administered by an independent third party, to pay for cleanup and lost-business revenue. The president also plans to create a national commission to investigate the causes of the spill and develop new safety and environmental standards. On Minerals and Management Service, Obama criticized the corruption within the agency and said that under new management it would act as a watchdog to the industry. Earlier on Tuesday, Obama named Michael Bromwich as the new head of the agency. The tragedy in the Gulf has also spurred the president to take action on clean energy initiatives, which he also touted for "the potential to grow our economy and create millions of good, middle-class jobs." As for containing the spill, 90 percent of the leak will be captured in the “coming days and weeks,” and Obama predicted that later in the summer when BP digs relief wells, the leak should be stopped entirely.
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