Obama, taking aim at Big Oil, says gas prices hurt | Reuters.

(Reuters) – President Barack Obama said on Friday that high gasoline prices are sapping the spending power of Americans, as he tried to limit political fallout by linking it to public hostility toward oil companies.

“We’ve got high gas prices that have been eating away at your paychecks and that is a headwind that we’ve got to confront,” Obama told auto plant workers in remarks to promote his policies to wean Americans from dependency on foreign oil.

Public anger over rising costs at the pump has put pressure on Obama to look for ways to provide quick relief for consumers as he seeks re-election in 2012.