KEY POINTS:
Under fire from Republicans, top Democratic politicians are considering lifting a ban on new offshore oil drilling.
The issue is now at the forefront of the United States presidential election, as Republican candidate senator John McCain has made allowing new drilling one of the centrepieces of his campaign, claiming it will help drive down petrol prices.
Democrats have said new drilling would do little to relieve consumer pain at the pump, accusing Republicans of misleading the public and being a pawn of big oil companies.
Yet signs are emerging that they are easing their opposition to the ban.
Last week House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she would consider allowing a congressional vote on the issue if drilling was part of a wider energy plan that also focused on promoting alternative energy sources.
Pelosi told a television interviewer she would consider a vote, but "It has to be part of something that says we want to bring immediate relief to the public, and not just a hoax".
In her party's weekly radio address yesterday, Pelosi said opening portions of the Outer Continental Shelf for drilling would be part of energy legislation House Democrats would put forward in coming weeks.
More than 30 Democrats have signed up to sponsor legislation that could pave the way for fresh drilling off America's coasts.
Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama has also moderated his stance, moving from staunch opposition to suggesting that new drilling could be part of a new energy strategy. That shift led to accusations from some of his supporters that he had flip-flopped.
A group of politicians from both parties, dubbed the "Gang of 10", has proposed a mixed strategy of new drilling and alternative energy, which could gather wide support. Yet plans for any fresh offshore drilling have outraged environmentalists. They believe it will take years to develop any oil reserves and that the move represents nothing more than a bonanza for an oil industry that already gets huge tax breaks. They also believe it will eventually pave the way for drilling in ecologically sensitive areas, such as parts of Alaska.
But the issue has become a problem for the Democrats after McCain enthusiastically embraced the idea. The Republican told a crowd in South Dakota: "We're going to drill here and we're going to drill now!"
It is a line that has since been repeated on the campaign trail and has struck a chord with those parts of the American public for whom high petrol prices are the key concern. It certainly threw Democrats off-balance, as they tried to push a more balanced energy policy with aims of reducing oil use.
It has offered Republican campaigners an issue to rally around and a stick with which to beat an Obama campaign that has started to make rare missteps. In one incident Obama mentioned that, if Americans kept their tyres inflated correctly, it would save petrol consumption and reduce the need for drilling. It became a powerful theme on conservative talk radio, where hosts lampooned Obama and accused him of putting tyre pressure at the forefront of his energy policy.
"This is a narrow race. Obama has a solid edge, but it is still close," said Professor Shawn Bowler, a political scientist at the University of California.
The polls are bearing that out. As the party convention season looms, the RealClearPolitics national average of polls has Obama ahead by just 3.2 points. In the battleground states the picture is mixed, with McCain ahead in Missouri, Virginia and Florida and Obama leading in Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
MO' MONEY
BARACK OBAMA
* Raised more than US$51 million in July.
* The Democratic National Committee reported US$27.7 million in July donations.
* Obama began August with US$65.8 million on hand and the DNC had US$28.5 million available.
* He raised US$52 million in June and a total of $390 million so far.
* Two million donors.
JOHN McCAIN
* Raised US$27 million in July, his biggest monthly haul.
* The Republican National Committee has brought in nearly US$26 million in July and has US$75 million on hand.
* Has US$21 million available to spend.
* Has raised US$140 million overall and has agreed to accept public financing - US$84 million - for the general election.
* 600,000 donors.
- OBSERVER, AP
