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As a few flip-flopping Florida politicians backpedal to shed their pro-drilling labels, exploration in the Gulf of Mexico continues. Last week’s oil spill 30 miles off the coast of Louisiana has killed state efforts to drill off Florida’s coastline in the immediate future, but as Whitney Ray tells us, the industry isn’t going to lie down and die.

With more than 11-hundred miles of coastline helping to bring in billions of tourist dollars, the thought of oil drilling near Florida has historically been considered political suicide.

Then in the summer of 2008, gas hit four dollars a gallon. Politicians began to flip-flop on drilling. Governor Charlie Crist had the most notable change in position.

“When you are paying over four dollars a gallon for gas you have to wonder if there might be additional resources you could utilize to bring that price down,” said Crist in June of 2008.

Oil lobbyists touted the industry’s newest technology as safe. Then last week, an explosion on one of BP’s newest rigs killed 11 and continues to pump thousands of gallons of oil into the gulf near Louisiana. Crist toured the destruction Tuesday.

“It was disturbing, I mean it was horrific,” Crist said Wednesday.

It will likely be months before the source of the accident is revealed, but David Mica with the Florida Petroleum Council says efforts for drilling near Florida will still move forward.

“We think that that importance of replacing and continuing to supply products to consumers is important and Florida has a role to play in that,” said Mica.

But Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink says no way. Sink held her ground, as dozens of politicians jumped on the drilling bandwagon.

“We need the kind of leaders who are able to stand up and be principled and understand that it’s important to get all the facts before drinking the Kool-Aid of the special interest,” said Sink.

Sink’s likely Republican opponent, Attorney General Bill McCollum, is also against the idea. In a Tuesday news release McCollum threatened to veto any drilling legislation if he’s elected governor.

Legislation lifting the ban on drilling in state waters, or three to ten miles off the coast, passed the state House in 2009, but the Senate refused to take it up. A similar plan this year was postponed just two weeks before the spill.