Despite reservations within his own party, President Obama is pushing ahead with energy security plans that seem likely to again aggravate members of his own party, this time on the issue of offshore oil and gas exploration.

Today, the President gives a speech on energy issues, focusing on expanded offshore oil and gas drilling, which has broad backing as one way to boost domestic energy production.

This is all part of an effort by the White House to stir more support for the work of three Senators, John Kerry (D-MA), Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Lindsay Graham (R-SC), who have been trying to put together what might best be described as a "grand compromise" on energy issues.

The reason that a different legislative plan of action was needed on energy was because the original drive for a Cap and Trade bill simply isn't going anywhere in the Senate.  

If President Obama is going to get an energy bill through the Congress, then it will have to be something that allows for more offshore energy exploration, more nuclear energy initiatives, and also some efforts to clamp down on carbon emissions that produce greenhouse gases.

You could call it Cap and Trade Lite, framed as an energy bill.

A few things backed by Repulicans, a few things backed by Democrats. 

Whether it can work on energy issues right now, that's still up in the air.

As for the idea of giving a boost to expanded offshore oil and gas production, that is a risky one for the White House, because while it might attract the support of the energy industry and some Republicans, it also could alienate a number of Democrats.

Last week, a group of ten coastal Senate Democrats sent a shot over the bow of the White House on the matter, warning the Obama Administration against any push to allow for more offshore exploration.

"We hope that as you forge legislation, you are mindful that we cannot support legislation that will mitigate one risk (global warming) only to put our coasts at greater peril from another source (offshore drilling)," said a group led by Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL).

In the past, Nelson has threatened to filibuster any legislation that opens up more areas off the Sunshine State to extra oil and gas exploration.  I would fully expect him to make that threat and follow through on it again if needed.

That kind of opposition is just part of the jigsaw puzzle that must be navigated by Democrats on a combination energy development-carbon emission regulation bill.

It won't be an easy thing to do, but then again, neither was health care reform.