Politics / President Obama Obama on BP: If Laws Were Broken, We'll Seek Justice Oil company must compensate victims of spill, president says By Marie Morris, Newser Staff Posted Jun 1, 2010 2:07 PM CDT Copied President Obama, with BP Oil Spill Commission co-chairs Bob Graham and William Reilly, speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, June 1, 2010, after their meeting. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) As oil continued to pour into the Gulf of Mexico, President Obama vowed today that history won't repeat. He continued to emphasize that BP must clean up the mess and compensate those devastated by the fallout, reports the Washington Times. "We have an obligation to investigate what went wrong and to determine what reforms are needed so that we never have to experience a crisis like this again," he said. "If oversight was inadequate to enforce these laws, oversight needs to be reformed," said Obama, who appeared in the Rose Garden with the co-chairmen of the commission investigating the spill, Bob Graham and William Reilly. "f our laws were broken, leading to this death and destruction, my solemn pledge is that we will bring those responsible to justice on behalf of the victims of this catastrophe and the people of the Gulf region." (More President Obama stories.) Report an error