WASHINGTON, May 23 (UPI) -- White House links to oil companies that supported President Barack Obama have slowed the U.S. response to the Gulf of Mexico oil leak, Sarah Palin suggested.
Appearing on "Fox News Sunday," the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential nominee said, "I don't know why the question isn't asked by the mainstream media and by others if there's any connection with the (campaign) contributions made to President Obama and his administration and the support by the oil companies to the administration -- if there's any connection there to President Obama taking so doggone long to get in there, to dive in there and grasp the complexity and the potential tragedy that we are seeing here in the Gulf of Mexico."
Palin's comments drew a quick response from the White House.
On CBS's "Face the Nation," press secretary Robert Gibbs said Palin must not have been "paying a whole lot of attention" during the presidential campaign.
"I'm almost sure that the oil companies don't consider the Obama administration a huge ally," Gibbs said. "We proposed a windfall profits tax when they jacked their oil prices up to charge for gasoline.
"My suggestion to Sarah Palin would be to get slightly more informed as to what's going on in and around oil drilling in this country."
Palin, who popularized the slogan "Drill, baby, drill" during the 2008 campaign. said Sunday she continues to support offshore drilling to reduce reliance on foreign energy sources.
"Having said that, these oil companies have got to be held accountable when there is any kind of lax and preventative measures to result in a tragedy like we're seeing right now in the gulf."
