Biden slams gov't oversight of offshore drilling

[May 15, 2010]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- Vice President Joe Biden says the federal government's oversight of offshore drilling "was as bad as I thought it was."

Biden was responding to a question about a New York Times story published Friday about Gulf of Mexico drilling plans that received approval from the Obama administration without the permits required under the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Biden told Pittsburgh radio station KDKA he thought lax federal oversight of permits was a problem throughout his six-term Senate career.

He said he opposed drilling as a senator during the Bush administration "because they just sort of threw away the key." Biden said that President Barack Obama's plan for drilling was conditioned on there being "real serious oversight."

[Associated Press; By FREDERIC J. FROMMER]

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