“I take responsibility. It is my job to make sure that everything is done to shut this down,” Obama declared in a lengthy news conference at the White House on Thursday. As he spoke, well owner BP struggled anew to plug the blown well that exploded five weeks ago, killing 11 workers and sending millions of gallons of polluting oil gushing out. (from AP via Yahoo! News)

You can read the full story on President Obama’s first news conference about the Gulf Coast oil spill at Yahoo! News.

To see more images of what’s happening in the gulf and on the coast, try a search for gulf coast oil spill and check out this Oil Spill Impact gallery by Yahoo! Editorial.

Photos from firedoglakedotcom, lagohsep, and The National Guard.