London-based BP has agreed to pay a total of $373 million in fines for violating regulations tied to a fatal refinery explosion in 2005, operating leaking oil pipelines and engaging in a price-fixing scheme, the government announced Thursday.

While the Iraq war continues to dominate the current political debate, Republican candidates are jockeying to position themselves as the true fiscal conservative in the race. The question is whether voters are satisfied with what they are hearing.