1. The oil drilling industry goes head-to-head with the Obama administration in court on Thursday over the White House effort to suspend deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico for six months in the wake of the catastrophic BP well blowout. Given the business and environmental stakes, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans is expected to rule quickly, after a rare one-hour oral argument on Thursday, on whether deepwater drilling should be temporarily halted again. A federal judge, also in New Orleans, lifted the administration’s moratorium last month after Hornbeck Offshore Services argued it was arbitrary and unfair because it was a blanket ban on all new drilling in depths below 500 feet. The Obama administration appealed the deci- sion, defending the suspension as needed to provide time to probe the BP oil spill’s cause and ensure other drilling rigs operate safely. The administration is seeking a stay of the judge’s ruling at the hearing, slated for 3 p.m. on Thursday. Oral arguments will be heard by a three-judge panel - two of whom were appointed by Republican President Ronald Reagan and one by Democratic President Bill Clinton. The suspension order affected new exploratory and development drilling and halted work at 33 sites, but did not include wells already producing oil.
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