Obama now supports tapping oil reserve

In a reversal, Barack Obama is proposing the government sell 70 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum stockpiles.

The Democratic presidential candidate says that move could help in the short-run to drive down gasoline prices that now top $4 a gallon. The proposal came in a major energy speech Obama has delivered Monday in Lansing, Mich. Previously, Obama opposed tapping into the reserves, located in caverns in Texas and Louisiana.

The Illinois Democrat says releases from the reserve in the past have lowered gas prices within two weeks.

Obama said U.S. politicians have failed for three decades to deal with the energy crisis, and he said his GOP rival John McCain has been part of that failure.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

CHICAGO (AP) — In a reversal, Barack Obama is proposing tapping the nation's strategic oil reserves to help drive down gasoline prices, his campaign said Monday.

Obama supports releasing light oil from the emergency oil stockpile now and replacing it later with heavier crude more suited to the country's long-term needs, according to a campaign fact sheet. Light crude oil is easier to refine into gasoline than heavier oil.

Also on Monday, the Obama campaign unveiled a television ad that criticizes Republican John McCain's energy policies.

"After one president in the pocket of big oil we can't afford another," says the ad, referring to President Bush's previous work in the oil industry.

Obama is emphasizing energy and the economy in campaign stops this week in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana, beginning with a speech Monday in Lansing, Mich. Gas prices over $4 a gallon have become a top issue in the presidential contest.

In the past, Obama has not advocated tapping the oil reserve, but campaign spokeswoman Heather Zichal said he has reconsidered. "He recognizes that Americans are suffering," she said.

The nation's strategic petroleum reserve contains 707.2 million barrels in salt caverns in Texas and Louisiana. It was last tapped shortly after Hurricane Katrina. Otherwise, President Bush has refused to use the reserves, saying they need to be left intact as an emergency stockpile. However, in the face of strong congressional pressure, Bush in June stopped filling the reserve until oil prices decline.

Obama's call for using the government reserve mirrors a proposal that has been pushed by congressional Democrats, but opposed by Republican leaders and the White House.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., for weeks has called for Bush to withdraw a "small amount" of oil from the government reserve to add to supplies and try to force down prices.

Both candidates have energy proposals to reduce U.S. dependence on oil. Obama's was first, and its centerpiece is a 10-year, $150 billion spending plan focusing on clean coal technology, further development of plug-in hybrid cars, commercialization of wind and solar power and other measures.

McCain's, which is called the Lexington Project, includes building 45 new nuclear power plants; offering a $300 million prize for major advancement of low-cost, plug-in hybrid or electric car technology; and "encouraging the market" in wind, hydroelectric and solar power. Both he and Obama would cut use of fossil fuels to combat climate change.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is capable of releasing about 4 million barrels a day. It's unclear what impact such release might have on global oil prices, or costs of gasoline at the pump. But a clear signal by the United States to use its emergency reserve to a significant extent could put downward pressure on oil markets at least for a time, energy experts say.