U.S. judge denies Obama admin stay on drill ban ruling

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. judge refused on Thursday to put on hold his decision that blocked the Obama administration from enforcing its six-month ban on deepwater oil drilling after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman in New Orleans rejected a request by the Obama administration to stay his decision that allowed deepwater drilling to resume after the Department of Interior ordered it halted temporarily when the BP Plc well began gushing oil more than two months ago.

The Obama administration can still ask the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit for a stay.

(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky, editing by Doina Chiacu)