"Of National Significance"

The importance of the oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico jumped during the day Thursday, as officials stared at possible consequences ranging from species extinctions(the reddish egret, pictured above) to massive killing of shrimp and other shellfish that supply the world. The danger is not only to the sea and shore but to the marshes, where oil may arrive as early as tonight. Once in the marshes, there is little that can be done to prevent severe damage. There is even some danger to the Mississippi River.

So earlier today, according to the LA Times:

"I have been receiving frequent briefings from my Cabinet and White House staff," Obama said. "While BP is ultimately responsible for funding the cost of response and cleanup operations, my administration will continue to use every single available resource at our disposal including potentially the Department of Defense to address the incident."

"This is a spill of national significance," Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told reporters at an earlier White House briefing. The designation means that assets from around the country and especially from other coastal areas can be used to fight the spill.

Officials said the government would open a federal command center in Mobile, Ala., joining another center in Robert, La., to oversee the response to the spill.

The New York Times added: Cleanup efforts, however, suffered a setback on Thursday when sea and wind conditions prevented officials from executing a controlled burn of some of the floating oil, said Rear Adm. Sally Brice O’Hare of the Coast Guard, who also took part in the briefing.

“We are being very aggressive, and we are prepared for the worst case," Rear Adm. O’Hare said. The United States Navy sent equipment and several vessels on Thursday to lend a hand, according to The Associated Press.

The Pentagon said on Thursday that “there is a full-blown effort” to determine how it best can help the cleanup efforts, said spokesman Geoff Morrell, but that no conclusions have been made about what that help would be."