NEW : Obama lauds Steven Chu for plugging the the Gulf of Mexico oil leak . Chu says he will stay on until a few days or beyond . Chu is the Nobel Prize for Physics winning physicist . Critics blamed Chu for failed government investments in clean energy development .
NEW : Obama lauds Chu for plugging the Gulf oil leak . Steven Chu says he will stay on until late February or beyond . Chu is a Nobel Prize winning physicist . Critics blamed Chu for failed government investments in clean energy development .