WASHINGTON (AP) _ President Barack Obama is confronting Americans’ anxiety over rising gasoline prices by drawing attention to his energy policies and taking credit for increased oil and gas production, a greater mix of energy sources and decreased consumption.
Obama is heading to Florida on Thursday to promote an energy strategy that the administration says will reduce dependence on foreign oil in the long term.
But Obama’s pitch will also have a subtext: that the federal government can do little to halt the current rise in gasoline prices.
Obama will speak at the University of Miami and tour a program that trains students as industrial energy-efficiency experts.
The program is one of 24 across the country.
A new Associated Press-GfK poll shows just 39 percent approve of Obama’s actions to address gas prices.
